Together On The Wrong Side Of The World
by letmefallasleep
Summary: Sort of an OFC fic. Norman Reedus has repeatedly stated that Daryl is incapable of a functioning, romantic relationship, and I've tried to create a story that stays true to that idea as much as possible. Basically, this is the story of two people incapable of love or romance, trying to love each other in the only ways they know how. Better summary inside.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Alright, so... Yes, this is my obligatory OFC fic... I WILL NOT FEEL GUILTY! We all wish we could have Daryl! All of you!

Ahem, anyways, now that that is out of the way... Yes, this is an OFC fic, although I do hope this will be a little different than some that you've read. In a way, it's not really an OFC fic in what we all think of them as. There isn't going to be a lot of lovey-dovey crap, or what you might consider 'romance'. Norman Reedus has stated repeatedly that he doesn't think Daryl is capable of a functioning romance with anyone, because of how mentally and emotionally damaged he is. And I'm going to try my damnedest to stay true to that idea.

Warnings: Mentions of past abuse (although I'll try to keep the graphic crap to a minimum), language (it is Daryl, after all), violence, angst, and etc, etc... You get the idea.

Disclaimer: I own nothing other than my female character. I make no money off this, so no copyright infringement takes place. : )

* * *

My name is Jesse. Never really had a last name. Well, actually not having one wasn't the problem. Real problem was, I had about seventeen between the time I was five, and the time the world as we knew it ended. Hell, to this day, I can't remember what my last name actually was. Earliest one I remember was 'Harris'.

But my foster parents at the time –when the world went to shit –were the Lindowskis. Tried telling me and the other three kids they had that everything was gonna be just fine. That all we had to do was just hole up inside, and wait it out.

I knew better. Whatever was happening outside wasn't something we were gonna be able to wait out. People _eating_ each other in the streets wasn't exactly something you just '_waited out_'.

So I ran. Filled my backpack from school up with Pop-Tarts, Band-Aids, Neosporin, and the warmest clothes I had, and left. Never looked back.

We were all living in this little suburb, right outside of Atlanta. I figured with what I'd seen on the news, my best bet was to get as far away from the city as possible. I figured I knew enough to get me by in the woods. One of my foster parents had been a forest ranger. He'd taught me how to hunt, fish, trap… How to survive in the wild.

Don't know how long I was out there before I stumbled across the little camp in the mountains. Maybe two months. Maybe three. But they took me in. Some guy named Shane –ex-cop –decided I wasn't much of a threat, told me I could stay if I wanted.

Hell, maybe I _was_ a little desperate for human contact. Maybe I thought staying with a group would be safer. To this day, I'm not real sure why I took him up on his offer to stay.

Most the people at the camp didn't interest me. Like a bunch of scared sheep, they huddled to the ex-cop for protection. And after twelve years in the Georgia Foster System, I'd learned to be self-dependent. Didn't want –or need –anybody. So they scrounged up a little pup tent somewhere, and I set up down by the water. They all tried giving me some shit about not being safe away from the group, but I figured I was probably safer down there, in the open, than up top there with all the trees giving the Geeks plenty of cover.

The only problem with staying was the two brothers. Merle and Daryl Dixon. They apparently had the same thought I had –or given what I'd come to find out about Merle, maybe the group had banished them there –and had set their camp up about fifty yards from mine.

First time I'd seen 'em, I'd went up to the camp to ask if they had any sort of soap. I knew after a couple months living in the woods, I was probably riper than some of the walking corpses I'd come across.

And there was the older one. Merle. Leering and eye-balling me across the main fire pit like I was some sort of meat.

* * *

"Hey there, missy. You's kinda cute," Came the chortled voice on the other side of the fire.

Jesse grimaced, but ignored the large, ugly man sitting just behind her, as she waited for the long-haired brunette woman to bring her a bar of soap.

"Hey! I'm talkin' to you, filly!"

Finally, she turned, one hand resting on her hip, the other hovering a few inches from the buck knife hanging off her belt. "Yeah? And I'm ignoring you, asshole," She said quietly, forcing herself to hold the man's stare.

"Oh ho ho! Will ya look at that! Seems like we finally found ourselves a feisty one! Eh, Daryl?"

Jesse's gaze drifted to the smaller, younger man crouching by the chair the loudmouth sat in, her eyes daring him to join his brother. He locked glances with her for just a moment, before speaking.

"Jus'… leave it alone, Merle," He grunted, turning his attention back to the fire.

"Oh, c'mon now, Darlena! That ain't no way to be! Hey, girly! You any good with that pig sticker?"

Starting to get irritated –_what the hell was taking the damn woman so long to find a bar of fucking soap?_ –Jesse smiled as sweetly as she could at 'Merle'.

"Dunno. Why don't you come over here, and help me find out, pig?"

She wasn't sure what she was expecting. Maybe for him to get out of the chair, and take her up on her offer, maybe a little bit of scorn, a few veiled threats…

But his laughter definitely wasn't on the list.

"I _like_ you, girly! You got spunk! Hell, I think you'll do alright."

"Here's the soap, honey."

Jesse turned, heart thumping in her chest, at the woman behind her holding out a bar of Irish Spring soap.

"Sorry we don't have anything… well, for girls, but…"

"It's _soap_. You _wash_ with it. Don't much matter what it smells like," Jesse muttered, grabbing the proffered bar, and stomping her way back down to the shoreline.

* * *

Never one to put too much stock in modesty, Jesse had stripped down to her underwear and white tank-top (lord, she missed her drawer full of bras), and dived in, keeping a firm grip on the soap in her hand as she swam out towards the middle of the lake.

God, it felt good, she thought as she began scrubbing away the months of muck and grime that had built up. She'd tried hard to keep herself clean, but water was scarce, and soap scarcer still. The last time she'd really been clean was the shower she'd taken before she left the Lindowskis.

She wasn't sure how long she stayed in the water. Knew it didn't seem near long enough, but the sun was starting to set. Last thing she needed was to get pneumonia or some shit from staying in the water too late.

She was almost out of the water when she spotted him.

"Well helllllloooo, missy! My day jus' keeps gettin' better an' better!"


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Alright, so yes, this is progressing slowly... Setting the stage and all that. Next few chapters will jump up to 'Tell It To The Frogs', and sort of follow the show from there. Anyways, thank you for everyone who read, and special thanks to everyone who reviewed.

And just a little PS type thing... While writing/thinking about this, the general soundtrack idea (what helped me come up with this, really) was Three Days Grace's 'Pain', Burn Season's 'Closer', Nirvana's 'Rape Me', and Linkin Park's 'Castle Of Glass'. Any of them really set the mood for what's coming up, which hopefully should be another day or two in the posting. : )

* * *

Jesse's eyes narrowed at the sight of Merle standing next to her clothes, but she never faltered as she continued sloshing her way back onto the bank, wishing she'd left her pants on.

"You need somethin', or you jus' out to make my life miserable?" She snapped, stopping a few feet in front of him.

"Hey, now, girly, no need to be mean. Ol' Merle jus' wanted to make sure you was safe!"

Jesse snorted as she reached for her clothes. "Yeah, an' I can jus' tell which parts a me you wanna keep your eyes on."

Surprisingly, he made no move to stop her as she began pulling her clothes on, pants first, quickly followed by her shirt.

"Look, filly, I was serious earlier. I _like_ a girl with a backbone. Mos' the women 'round here… They spend half the day cryin', the other half talkin' 'bout how shit _used_ ta be. But you… You a _survivor_. I think you an' me… We could get ta be real good friends if we were both of a mind ta be."

"Yeah, well, I ain't."

His face stayed deceptively casual, but Jesse began cursing herself for nine kinds of foolish for leaving her knife in her tent. The large man's eyes flashed darkly, and his entire body tensed, as the air between the two began to practically vibrate with the tension.

"Listen here, you little skank: that little _toothpick_ a yours ain't gonna keep you safe out here. Ain't no place for that feminist bullshit in the real world. You don't shack up with a man, you's gonna get your ass eaten… Or worse," He said menacingly, taking a step towards her. " 'Cause let's be honest with each other here… I could gut, and skin you, an' there ain't a damn thing you could do to stop me."

Jesse steeled herself, bracing her feet in the loose sand, taking up the basic Kenpo Karate foot form, but forcing her arms to stay loose at her sides.

"Ya welcome ta try," She said quietly, her voice icy.

"Merle!"

Both heads turned in tandem towards the direction of the Dixon tent, and Jesse breathed a sigh of relief when she seen the younger brother standing by the tent, a string of squirrels in one hand. But Merle didn't move, except to lock eyes with her again.

"Merle!"

There was more panic, maybe a bit of pleading in Daryl's voice now.

"What, Darlena, what?!" Merle snapped, finally turning to stomp off back towards his own tent.

Jesse took a few more deep breaths, feeling the urge to vomit wash over her, as she dimly heard the younger Dixon brother say something about cleaning supper. Things were quiet for a few minutes, as Jesse finally scrambled towards her tent, hearing the faint sounds of raised voices behind her.

She didn't sleep at all that night.

* * *

Jesse groaned as she rolled over onto her stomach, her eyelids drooping, and her stomach growling. The sun was just starting to peak over the top of the quarry, a beautiful sight, yet one that did nothing to improve her mood. Muttering under her breath, she unzipped her tent, stepping out into the chilly morning air. Her irritated grumbling quickly turned to a yelp when she seen a lone figure crouched a few yards away.

"What the hell?!"

Heart racing a million miles an hour, her shock turned into anger when the figure stood, revealing the younger, smaller Dixon brother.

"Jesus, you tryin' ta wake the whole damn camp?!" He swore, moving closer to her.

She took a step back, feeling for her knife, as she tried to slow her heart beat. "Jus' what the hell you think you're doin'?" She demanded.

"Keepin' your sorry ass safe," He snorted. "Since 'parently you too _stupid_ to know enough not to bait the damn _bear_."

"Excuse me?" Jesse bit out, seriously considered gutting the man.

"What, you deaf?" He growled, taking another step closer.

That was when she seen it. The way he favored his right leg. The black eye.

"Jesus, what the…" Instantly, she stopped. "Look, I 'preciate the thought, but I don't need no one lookin' after me. I take care a myself. An' if your pig ass excuse for a brother wants ta try somethin', I'll _gut_ him like a pig."

Daryl –_that was his name_ –glared at her for a few minutes, before scoffing. "Fine. Don't come cryin' to me when you get yourself killed. Stupid little bitch."

* * *

"Shane, can I talk to you for a minute?"

Shane looked up from cleaning his gun, and seen the concern on Dale's face.

"Yeah, what's up, Dale?"

"It's the girl."

"Jesse? What, she causing problems?"

Dale hesitated as he kneeled down next to the dead fire pit. "Well… Not exactly."

Shane sighed; as usual, the older man's slow way of getting to the point was setting his teeth on edge. "Dale… I got a lotta shit to do this mornin'. Think you could get to the point sometime soon?"

"It's Merle. I heard him talking to her yesterday when she came up looking for soap. And I saw him watching her while she was in the lake. Then this morning, I see Daryl standing guard near her tent."

Shane sighed. "Alright. I'll talk to Merle. I'll have Lori talk to the girl… see if she can talk her into movin' her tent up here."

* * *

"Dixon!"

Shane mentally cringed when the smaller of the two brother stuck his head out of the tent, his face a mess of bruises.

"What?" The man muttered, squinting up in the brightness of the mid-morning sun.

"Your brother around, Daryl?"

"No." With that, the dark haired man disappeared back into his tent, causing Shane to sigh, and wonder for the thousandth time why he'd allowed the two Dixon brothers to stay with the group. Why he was _still_ allowing them to stay.

"Hey! Daryl!" Shane snapped.

"What?!" This time, the anger and impatience was written on every muscle of the younger man's body, as Shane watched him haul himself out of the tent he shared with his brother.

"If he ain't here, then where the hell is he, Daryl?" Shane asked, forcing himself to sound patient. Like he didn't have a million other things to do. Like he wasn't exhausted, and irritated.

"Dunno. Took off after I got back this mornin'."

"Back from guarding the new girl, so I hear." Shane smiled as Daryl glared, the effect somewhat ruined by the swollen eye. "C'mon now, Dixon… Where's your brother?"

"Tol' you I don't fuckin' know. Jesus, I ain't his damn baby-sitter."

Shane shrugged. "Seems like it might be easier, though," He said casually to Daryl's quickly retreating back.

The look on Daryl's face as he turned was positively murderous, and Shane was reminded again that while Daryl might kowtow to his older brother, he wasn't exactly a man Shane would want sneaking up on him in a dark alley. Or even a brightly lit alley for that matter.

"An' jus' what the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Pure venom coated the smaller man's words as he pulled himself up straighter.

"Well... Jus' seems to me like it'd be a helluva lot easier if you tried baby-sittin' _Merle_, rather than try an' _guard_ everybody else. Jus' a thought." With that, Shane gave Daryl a slight nod, and turned to head back up the quarry. "You have yourself a fine mornin', Dixon."


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Alright, so this isn't progressing quite as quickly as I like, so this chapter is kind of rushing things along a little bit. Next chapter will jump up to the morning of Tell It To The Frogs, and go from there. Thank you to everyone who read, and everyone who has reviewed. : )

* * *

"Jesse?"

Jesse groaned, stopping her work, as she heard the brunette from the previous night calling her.

"What?" She barked roughly, before resuming sharpening her buck knife.

"Honey, we just… Well, Shane was thinking… It might be a better option for you to come up top with the rest of us. You know… Safety in numbers, and all that," The brunette said with a chuckle, plopping down next to Jesse, uninvited.

* * *

Lori felt a twinge of sadness as the girl turned to look at her suspiciously. "Yeah, if by 'safety' you mean, more people for the Geeks to eat before they get to you, yeah sure," She said with a snort.

Lori frowned, and reached an arm out to touch the girl on the shoulder, shocked when her hand was forcefully shoved away.

"Don't fuckin' touch me, lady."

Lori could only stare in stunned silence. Somehow –and damned if she knew how –the girl had swatted her hand away, and retreated a few feet, knife at the ready, all before Lori even knew what had happened.

"Um… Alright. Alright, I'm sorry, Jesse. I didn't mean to… I was just uh…" Lori licked her lip unsurely, before standing, and beginning to back away, back towards the safety of the camp, hands up in either surrender, or calming, she wasn't sure which. "I'm sorry. Didn't mean to bother you."

As soon as she was out of eyesight of the young girl, Lori bolted up the hill, eyes peeled for Shane. She found him in his usual spot by the fire, meticulously cleaning one of the many rifles, as he did daily.

"Shane, we need to talk," She said quietly, dropping to her knees next to him.

"Yeah. Seems to be a lot of that goin' 'round today. Suppose you didn't have much luck with the girl."

Lori scoffed. "I'd call that the understatement of the year. You find Merle?"

Shane shook his head, sighing as he set the rifle down, and pulled his pistol out of his holster. "Nope. Found Daryl though. Looks like Merle took a couple good swings at him 'fore he disappeared. How'd it go with the girl?"

Lori snorted, pushing herself to her feet, as she gazed back down at the quarry. "Well, let's see… I told it'd be safer up here, she basically accused me of trying to find people to throw to Walkers, and after that, she nearly sliced my arm off. Apparently, she doesn't like to be touched any more than Daryl, or Sophia."

"Shit," Shane muttered, setting the gun on his lap, and leaning his head back. "Ya know, I don't think I ran into this many battered kids when I was a freakin' _cop_. Now, freakin' _apocalypse_ an' all that, an' suddenly they all crawlin' outta the damn woodworks or somethin'."

"So what do we do?"

The trust in the woman's eyes nearly undid Shane. The blind… _faith_ all these people had in him astounded him, but Lori's most of all. He'd gotten her damn husband shot, barely avoided getting her and her son both killed leaving Atlanta, but she still had complete and total faith that he would make things right. That he would make this… whatever the hell it was with the girl, and the Dixons… right.

So he sighed, and stood, sticking his pistol back in his hip, before leaning down to plant a light kiss on her forehead.

"Don't you worry 'bout it. I'll take care of it," He said softly. "I'll take care of it."

* * *

Despite herself, Jesse was dozing. She'd tried staying awake, but the warm sun beating down on her, and the comfort of the soft sand on her back was slowly lowering her resolve, and she could feel herself start to slide into oblivion.

"Jesse!"

_Ignore 'em._

"Hey!"

_Go away._

"Jesse!"

"What?!" She finally snapped, pushing herself into a sitting position, watching as the ex-cop made his way closer to her. "Don't none a y'all 'round here understand the meanin' of the word 'privacy'?"

Surprisingly, the man stopped a few feet away from where she sat, hands held up in a pacifying gesture.

"Hey, I ain't tryin' to bug you none, jus' figured we needed to have a little chat now that you're all settled in."

* * *

Instantly, Shane could see what Lori meant. The girl's eyes narrowed sharply, as her entire body tensed at his words.

"Oh yeah? 'Bout what?"

"Well, see, the thing is… Everybody 'round here contributes somethin'. Carol, Jacquie, Lori, Amy… They keep up with the cookin', the cleanin', an' the laundry. Glen an' T-Dog make the supply runs. Daryl brings us back fresh meat. Rest of us stand guard. So we need to… _discuss_… what your spot here is gonna be like," He said slowly, trying to choose his words with care.

"I ain't nobody's bitch," She spat, pulling her knees up to her chest.

"Hey, now, I didn't say ya were, did I? I jus' asked what you planned on contributin' here. You any good with guns?"

Slowly –hesitantly –the girl nodded. "One a my foster families were forest rangers. I ain't too bad with a rifle. Better with a bow though. Ain't got no use for pistols."

"No use, or no skill?" Shane asked rhetorically, a slight chuckle threatening to escape.

"No _use_. Geeks get close enough that you gotta use a damn pistol, ya screwed anyways. Better off usin' your damn knife, an' not attractin' a whole damn herd," She growled, grey eyes glaring at him underneath her mop of curly black hair.

"A'ight, a'ight. Fair enough, I suppose. Say I put a .22 rifle, a shotgun, a bow, a buck knife, and a .22 pistol down, right here, right now, tol' you to pick two. What'd you take?"

"I got my own bow, an' knife; don't need none a yours."

"Any good at huntin'?"

"Been feedin' myself for three months."

"An' that ain't much of an answer," Shane pointed out.

She stood, brushing the dirt off her jeans, still glaring. "I can hunt jus' _fine_. Little late in the day now, but I can go out tomorrow. I can show you."

Shane smiled as he stood. "A'ight, then. I'll send Daryl out with ya first thing tomorrow mornin'."

"What?! I don't need no damn baby-sitter."

"This ain't up for debate, sweetheart. You wanna stay? Fine. We'll be glad ta have you. But you ain't goin' fifty feet from this camp 'till I know you can take care a yourself," Shane said sternly. "An' if you don't like it, you can pack the little bit a shit you had when you got here, an' take right back off. Them's the rules. Like it or leave it."


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Wow, I was sort of surprised by the anti-Shane reviews for the last chapter lol. Personally, I was ticked when Rick killed Shane; thought Shane was right in everything he told Rick. And even here in my story, I personally don't think Shane did anything 'evil' or 'bad'. Like Andrea says, his presentation leaves a little to be desired, but at the end of the day, he does have Jesse's well-being in mind. IDK, just a thought, I'm sure most will probably disagree with me lol. So thank you to everyone who's read, and special shout-outs to those who have reviewed. I know this moving slowly, and maybe not quite what you'd expect, but I do have an end goal in mind with all this, if y'all will just bear with me. : )

* * *

Daryl watched the girl walking in front of him suspiciously, as they silently moved through the trees.

When the cop had told him that the girl was gonna go with him on his hunting trip, Daryl had balked. He didn't hunt with _nobody_. Hell, even Merle didn't go with him. Hunting wasn't exactly a two person job. More likely to shoot whoever you was with than not. And he definitely wasn't in the mood to get shot, much less by some tiny whisp of a girl.

But Mr. _Police Man_ had been insistent. Told him how the girl had said she was a decent hunter. How the cop needed to know if that was true or not. Needed to know if the girl could protect herself in the woods before she went out alone.

All of which made sense to Daryl. Just didn't understand why the hell it had to be _him_ doing the watching.

But he did have to give her some grudging credit. She wasn't half-bad, all things considered. For a _girl_, anyways. Hadn't taken her long to pick up the deer trail Daryl had taken 'em to, although what really impressed him was the silence.

Most women never stopped chattering. On, and on, never shutting their mouths for more than a few seconds. This chick hadn't said a word since they left, other than the slight snort when she seen his crossbow, a favor he'd returned upon seeing her compound.

But shit, that had been about four hours ago. Was kinda nice. Hell, she even _walked_ quiet. Hard to believe that she was a city-slicker. Started thinking Shane must've been wrong about that. Daryl hadn't ever seen somebody raised in the city that didn't stomp through the woods like a bull in a damn china shop.

But this girl nearly put him to shame, she moved so quiet. Hell, glancing down, Daryl realized she wasn't even leaving much of a trail. He was almost impressed.

_Almost_.

* * *

Jesse could feel the redneck's eyes on her. Judging her every move, ever since they'd left the camp that morning. She figured they'd been at it for about eight hours, when she finally pulled up short, turning to look at him.

"So do I pass?"

The sudden noise breaking through the complete silence of the woods startled even her, but the other hunter looked positively spooked for a second, before grunting as he dropped down, resting his weight on his toes as he opened his water canteen.

"Ya did 'fore you started _talkin'_. Knew a quiet woman was too good ta be true," He muttered, twisting the top back on the canteen, and chucking it at her.

Jesse scoffed. "C'mon… Been out here for eight hours, ain't seen nothin' yet. Ain't gonna, not this late in the day. Hell, ain't even seen signs of smaller critters. No coons, no rabbits… You an' your asshole brother probably jus' about cleared this section out. How long y'all been here, anyways?"

Daryl shrugged, as he leaned back against a tree, motioning for Jesse to do the same. "Dunno how long Captain America an' his group were here, but me an' Merle rolled in 'bout a month ago. Figure we'll take a breather for a few, then we'll head south. Probably hunted this spot 'bout dry."

Jesse blinked in confusion, before realizing he was talking about them hunting. "A'ight. Not a whole helluva lotta hours left to the day though. Figure it's gotta be about four o'clock. Maybe three hours a daylight left if we're lucky. Might be better off tryin' again tomorrow."

"What, you scared of the dark?"

* * *

Daryl felt a feral grin cross his face as the girl glared at him, grey eyes flashing.

"What, you tellin' me you ain't these days?" She said with a snort, pushing herself to her feet.

Daryl shrugged as he stood, glancing around the still forest. "Get yourself up in a tree, Geeks can't get to ya. Ain't coordinated enough for climbin'. Unless you scared a heights too."

"Well hell, I'll probably get a better night sleep in a tree surrounded by geeks than I would back at camp with your pervert brother," She spat, hooking her bow over her shoulder as she started walking again.

"You shut your nasty skank-hole 'bout my damn brother!"

"Or what?" She taunted, turning to look at him. "You gonna 'make me'?"

Daryl froze for a second. He hadn't ever hit a woman; wasn't about to start. But damned if he didn't want to knock those white teeth straight down her damn throat.

"C'mon, Mr. Big Man. Why don't you come over here an' shut my 'nasty skank-hole' if you think you's man enough. Hell, your brother may be a nasty perv, but at least he's got some damn balls on him!"

"You best shut the hell up! Shit, you ain't nothin' but a skinny piece a ass-bait! Ain't no surprise you's on your own! Bet your folks jus' fuckin' _left_ your sorry ass by the road first chance they had!" He snapped back.

Her left hook caught him off guard, colliding neatly with his head, but instinct sent his own fist flying, and he was rewarded with the satisfying sound of flesh hitting flesh, as the two of them went ass over tea kettle into the dirt and pine needles of the Georgia forest.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Alright... So I'm not really sure why I'm continuing this. This chapter's choppy as hell, and to be honest, I'm not even that happy with how it's turning out, but I'm hoping that it'll start to pick up, and I'll start feeling something for this particular story sometime soon. I'm going back through, and redoing the first few chapters and everything, so... Eh, we'll see. Anyways, this is the night before Rick shows up in camp, and a day and a half before we first see Daryl on the show. Just to give you a rough idea of a time line. Shout outs to Leyshla Gisel, and FanFicGirl10 for reviewing. Really, if not for you two, I would've deleted this already and given up in abject despair lol. : )

* * *

Neither of the two combatants heard it at first. The sound of knuckles hitting flesh, and the snapping and crunching of the leaves and twigs as they rolled across the ground hid the shuffling footsteps until it was almost too late.

The girl had just landed one hell of a blow to his jaw -Daryl was sure she knocked a couple of teeth loose – when he caught sight of it out of the corner of his eye, just beyond the girl practically sitting on his chest.

Without thinking, as soon as he heard the growling and moaning, Daryl put all of his weight into throwing the smaller girl off of him with his feet, while unsnapping his knife from his side as the Walker attacked. Luckily, he'd rolled the girl to the side, instead of straight back; as it was the Geek practically fell on him. If he'd pushed her straight back, damn thing probably would've taken a chunk out of her

Struggling to keep the thing off him, he brought his knife up, jamming it straight through the rotting eye socket. A moment later, a blue feathered arrow nearly tore the Walker's jaw off.

"Shit!" Daryl swore, the air rushing out of his chest as the full weight of the large corpse collapsed on him, seconds before the awesome smell of rotting dead flesh hit his nose. "Get this maggot bait off a me!"

He pushed, the girl pulled, and in a few seconds, the two former fighters sat, panting, the only sound against the now quiet forest.

Finally, Daryl looked over at the girl, and felt a wave of shame crash into him. A black eye was quickly forming above an already bruised cheek, right next to the obviously broken, and still bleeding nose. Scratches covered her arms, and her white tank top was covered in mud, twigs, and leaves, just like her hair.

"Sorry 'bout that."

Daryl started a bit, before feeling his eyebrows raise at the girl's apology. "What?" Just what the hell was she apologizin' for? He'd hit _her_, after all. Got into an out and out brawl with a girl whose head barely reached the top of his chest. A girl probably fifteen years younger, and sixty pounds lighter than him.

"I shouldn't a went at ya like that. An' I'm sorry 'bout saying ya had no balls. I shouldn't a said that," She said quietly, swiping at the blood running over her lip with the back of her hand.

Daryl rubbed the back of his head uncomfortably. "Ain't gotta 'pologize. Sorry 'bout... 'bout your face, an' all that. Wasn't right, me hittin' ya."

The girl chuckled. "Seem to 'member me swingin' first. 'Sides, you ain't gonna be winnin' any beauty awards for a while. That lip's gonna hurt like a _bitch_ later."

Daryl rolled his eyes, spitting out a wad of blood, and he'd be damned if that wasn't a tooth in the middle of the small, bloody pile. "Hell, gotta admit, I'm kinda impressed. That's a hell of a left hook, girly," He said with a half smile, reaching over to pull his knife out of the Walker's corpse.

"My name's Jesse. Start usin' it, or I'll start callin' you 'boy'."

"Fair 'nough. C'mon. We should keep movin'," He said, standing, and offering the girl -Jesse -a hand up.

"So we headin' south still?" She asked, accepting his hand.

"Yeah. Figure we keep movin' south west, we should hit some new ground in a few hours. State park ain't much more than three hours from here."

The girl -_Jesse_, he reminded himself -shrugged as she picked up his crossbow and handed it to him. "I ain't travelin' after dark. Don't care how many knocks we throw; not walkin' 'round these woods in the dark," She said casually as they started moving, with her falling into place behind him.

Daryl spared her a backwards glare over his shoulder, but kept moving. "Know these area pretty good; there's a good size tree stand, maybe 'bout half hour, forty five minutes from here. Camp there for the night, an' try and pick up a fresh trail in the mornin'."

"So you from around here? I mean, you seem to know the area pretty good."

"Yeah. Grew up 'bout a hundred miles north of Atlanta, little town called Albion. But me an' Merle... We used ta jus'... get lost for weeks at a time. Eat what we could find, an' jus' explore. The pig said you was from the city?"

He grinned to himself at the girl's snort, knowing he was right about the cop making a mistake.

"Nah, I was born an' raised up in the mountains. My mama an' my uncle got popped for cookin' up meth, so I went into the foster system. Bounced 'round a lot, then 'bout six months for all this shit started, I ended up with a family in Atlanta."

"What part a the mountains?" At the girl's -_Jesse_!- suspicious look, he added, "Merle used ta have a huntin' cabin up by Bear Mountain."

"My grandaddy used to own a little restaurant in Parish, jus' north a the main road leadin' up the mountain."

Daryl turned in surprise. "No shit? Your grandaddy owned Daddy Ed's?"

The girl smiled, the first real smile Daryl'd seen on her. "Yeah. You been there?"

"Hell yeah! The ol' lady that used to work the counter... I wasn't much for breakfast, but I loved hash... So this ol' lady always used to bring me out nothin' but a big ol' plate of hash. Hell, most times, I don't think she even charged Merle for it," He said with a chuckle, as he started to walk again. "One a the toughest ol' broads I ever met. One a those, jus' as tall layin' down as she was standin' up. Shit, I think even Merle was a bit scared of her. He'd get to swearin', an' she'd come over, an' jus' give him this look, 'fore givin' him some shit 'bout not swearin' in front a his baby brother, and I'll be damned if he didn't even look embarrassed."

Jesse laughed. "Yeah, that was Cheyenne. She was married to grandaddy's brother long time 'fore my mama was born. After Uncle Georgie died, she jus' kinda... stuck around, I guess. Don't think grandaddy could a run the place without her." Suddenly, the girl's voice took a serious note. "When was the last time you was up there?"

Daryl rubbed his jaw as he thought. "Shit... musta been... 'bout five years or so maybe."

"An'... they was both still there?"

"Yeah. Actually, was the first time I'd went without Merle. Musta been durin' one a his stints in the joint."

"Oh."

Realization slammed into him, as he heard the lost note in the girl's voice, and realized why she'd asked about them. "You ain't seen 'em since they put you in the system?" He asked quietly, stopping to look at her.

She bit her lip, as she swallowed a few times before answering.

"Court order. Could only have supervised visits with any of mama's family; had to set it up through whatever foster parents I was with, get their _permission_ an' all that... Surprise surprise, most of the folks I ended up with didn't want my hillbilly family showin' up at their front door."


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Alright, so this was actually a fairly decent-length chapter, which is kinda cool... I'm almost done with rewriting the first chapters, so keep an eye out for that. Thanks for reading.

* * *

Daryl hadn't known what to say to the girl's words. A couple dozen useless, comforting, bullshit sayings came to mind, but knowing how much he hated to hear 'em, he couldn't figure Jesse would like 'em any better than he had.

So they traveled in silence, until he found the tree stand he was looking for. It wasn't much; no walls, or anything, but it was a good fifteen feet off the ground, and large enough for both of them to sleep on.

"That gonna work for ya, princess?" He asked with smirk, pointing at the stand.

She gave him one of the bitchiest smiles he'd ever seen in return, but otherwise ignored him as she started climbing up the branches.

Once again, he found himself a bit impressed. Damn girl shimmied up the tree like some sorta monkey, before clambering onto the stand itself.

"You comin', or what?"

Daryl glared as he started up, knowing he was nowhere near as graceful looking as he started lumbering his way up. When he took a look up, he seen her staring at him with a small grin, and knew she was thinking the same thing.

"Don't you be starin' at my ass, girly," He grunted, hauling himself up to the next branch.

A snort met his ears. "What ass, boyo?"

"Ya know... you're probably one a the most damned annoyin' female I ever met," He said, minus his usual gruffness, but with an eye roll as he finally made it onto the platform. "Next time the pig wants me to go huntin' with someone, I'm gonna shove that oversized gun a his right up his ass."

Jesse nodded as she moved towards the edge of the stand, hanging her legs off. "Yeah. Sorry 'bout that. Huntin' ain't exactly a two person hobby. One a my foster daddy's used to say, 'Two people goin' huntin' together might as well save some time, an' jus' shoot each other 'fore they go'," She said with a chuckle.

Much to Daryl's surprise, the girl reached into one of the many pockets on her jeans, and pulled out... _could it be?_

"If that's really Camels in there, I swear ta God, I'll kiss your ass for the rest of eternity," He groaned, looking at the pack hopefully.

She laughed as she pulled one of the cigarettes out, before tossing the pack at him. "The guy who told me the 'two people huntin' thing? He was a uh... shit, whaddya call it... preppers, that's it. Granted, he was waitin' for an economic crash or some shit, but he had a lotta good points. He said that anybody who survived the first few months would have anything that they 'needed'. So ya have ta stock up on shit that people _wanted _if ya wanted anythin' ta bargain with_. _I got two more cartons a these back at camp. Here," She said with a laugh, tossing him a cheap bic lighter.

Daryl couldn't help the contended sigh that escaped with his first puff of smoke. Hot damn, but that was nice. "Shit... Ain't had a smoke since... well, pack I had 'fore all this shit went down didn't last all that long."

"I didn't start 'til it all went down," Jesse said with a shrug. "Never had the money 'fore that... One nice thing 'bout the damn apocalypse was didn't have ta worry 'bout payin' for nothin' no more."

"Sounds like this foster dad a yours was a smart man," Daryl said after a few minutes of silence. "Sounds like ya got lucky."

Jesse scoffed as she lit her own cigarette. "Nah, lucky would a been stayin' with my ma. Endin' up with the MacIntyres was jus'... first piece a 'not-bad-luck' I'd had in a while."

Daryl snorted, before taking another long drag. "Ya tellin' me that growin' up with 'Meth Mama' would a been better?"

"Don't you dare say shit 'bout my ma, or I'll knock ya off this damn thing," She said darkly. "Mama an' Uncle Toby only cooked the shit; they never used it.

"They both had worked at a plant, 'bout an hour an' a half away from town. Wasn't nothin' closer; grandaddy couldn't 'ford ta pay 'em to sling plates. But then the plant closed... Money was getting' pretty tight... Uncle Toby was gonna lose the house... So one a mama's ol' friends from high school tol' 'em how much money he was makin' cooking methamphetamine in his bathroom. An' they jus'... jumped on it," She said simply.

"My brother got hooked on that shit when he was twelve. So don't go preachin' the meth head sob story. That shit ruined his fuckin' life," He snarled.

"Ain't nobody stuck the needle in his damn arm. Your brother made a choice. Now I ain't sayin' my family's innocent, or saints; I ain't that stupid. But they made a choice, an' they have ta live with that. Jus' like Merle has ta live with his," She said quietly. "Jus' like we all do."

"Merle didn't have no damn 'choice'," Daryl snapped, grinding his cigarette out. "My daddy an' his drunk friends thought it'd be jus' fuckin' hilarious ta pin him down, an' pump him full of the shit. Every damn day for a fuckin' week! So don't sit there an' talk ta me 'bout fuckin' choices!"

The silence following his outburst seemed to stretch on into eternity. Finally, Daryl reached for the Camels, snatching the lighter from where it lay in between them. He took a few long drags, before finally looking back at the girl.

He was surprised to see the guilt written on her face, as she met his gaze, gray eyes holding blue for a few seconds, before he finally looked away.

"The hell you starin' at?" He asked gruffly.

"Jus' tryin' to figure out if offerin' ta fuck ya would make up for my stupidity, or if it'd jus' make everythin' real awkward the rest a the night."

"The fuck?!" He swore, nearly falling off the edge of the platform in shock. "The hell is wrong with ya?!"

The crazy bitch actually sighed as she lit her own smoke.

"Yeah. Definitely awkward."

* * *

"So... what, you jus' gonna ignore me?"

Daryl grunted, taking another puff of his ninth cigarette. "S'the plan."

It'd started getting dark about half an hour before, which was about the time the girl had laid down. Daryl thought she'd already fallen asleep...

Apparently not.

"So that's it then? You's jus' gonna ignore me forever?"

"The hell difference it make to you?" He grunted.

He heard her sit up. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see her wrapping her long sleeve shirt tighter around herself with one hand, she reached for the cigarettes with the other.

"Guess it... doesn't really matter none."

Shit. Seriously sounded like the girl was gonna cry. Shit, shit, shit. How the hell did he get himself into such a mess?

"The hell's wrong with you, huh?" He demanded. "Ya always go 'round offerin' ta sleep with total strangers?"

The girl shrugged. "Mos' guys tend ta think it's the best way ta 'pologize."

"Yeah, an' ain't most guys. 'Sides, ya can't jus'..." He stopped, knowing his face was probably redder than a tomato.

"Jus' sex. Don't mean nothin'."

"Yeah, sure it don't. That's why ya look like I jus' killed your damn puppy," He growled.

"Look, I'm sorry, a'ight? I didn't... I dunno, I'm jus' sorry."

He'd be damned if she didn't look like she was gonna start bawling any minute. Jesus, what the hell was wrong with the damn kid?

"Jus'... go ta sleep," He muttered, flicking his cigarette off the stand, and laying down as far away from the kid as possible.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Alright, so firstly... Big shout-outs to my awesome friend Al Harris. : ) You always make me grin, even when I feel like I'm on death's door with the plague lol. Also, thanks to Leyshla Gisel and FanFicGirl10, who I'm pretty sure are the only other people reading this lol. You two rock. : )

* * *

Jesse wasn't sure how long she'd been asleep, when she felt a hand snake over her mouth, pulling her closer. Instinctively, she lashed out with her feet, hearing a pained grunt letting her know that she'd connected with something. A moment later, a powerful arm grabbed her around the chest, pinning her arms to her side. Desperately, she jabbed her elbow back as hard as she could.

"Jesus, knock it off!" A menacing voice hissed in her ear. "Jus' keep quiet, an' we'll be fine."

Oh shit. Panic raced through her chest as she began struggling in earnest, trying to bite the hand across her mouth, trying to free her arms from the iron grip around her, kicking out with her feet the best she could from her awkward position.

"I'm gonna knock ya out in a second, princess! Shut the fuck _up_!"

* * *

Daryl was starting to get pissed as another one of the girl's booted feet caught him in the shin. Half a dozen Walkers were almost directly below 'em, and the damn kid was making enough noise to wake the few dead who _weren't_ up and roaming around. A second later, he felt her teeth sink into his hand.

"Dammit, Jesse!" He hissed, determined to try one last time, before he knocked her on the head. "Knock it off, or it ain't gonna be pretty!"

He was stunned when she instantly stilled, going limp in his grasp. He could feel her heart thudding against his chest, her breathing ragged against his hand, as they both stilled..

It seemed an eternity before the shuffling footsteps, and the growls and moans faded, as the Walkers shambled away. It was probably closer to ten minutes. Either way, it was too damn long for comfort. As soon as he felt it was safe, he released his grip on the girl, shoving her off of him roughly.

"The hell's wrong with ya?" He snapped, rubbing at his bruised shins with one hand, while inspecting the bite mark on his palm. "Las' time I try an' keep your crazy ass from bein' walker bait. Jesse? Hey!"

She was just laying there shaking, her eyes clenched shut, knees pulled up to her chest. Hesitantly, he reached over, and shook her arm.

"Hey! Girly! Jesse! C'mon, now, everythin' s'alright. Walkers're gone."

It was a tense few minutes, before the shaking stopped, and slowly –_God, it was so fuckin' slow _–her eyes opened, and she stared at him blankly for a moment.

"Thank Christ… What the _hell_ was that?" Daryl demanded.

"Uh… Nothing. Sorry, you jus'… you spooked me," She said breathlessly. "Help me up, will ya?"

Daryl grabbed her arm, and carefully pulled her into a sitting position. "You a'ight?"

"Yeah. Yeah, jus'… Jus' give me a minute…"

"Would a smoke help?"

She took a deep breath. "Yeah. Yeah, it would."

Daryl nodded as he lit two cigarettes, handing one of them to the girl.

"Thanks. I… Sorry, you jus'… you spooked me… Grabbin' me like that," She said with an apologetic shrug.

Daryl sighed. "Yeah. Guess I can understand that. I wasn't thinkin', I jus' kinda panicked when I heard the walkers. You gonna be okay?"

"I'll be a'ight. I… I jus'… Sorry."

The two sat in uncomfortable silence for a few minutes, as the smoke from their cigarettes curled away through the trees, mingling with fog from the early morning air. Jesse was looking everywhere _but_ at him, he realized, but she wasn't really _looking_ at anything at the same time.

"Wanna explain why you were willin' to sleep with me, but ya have a damn panic attack as soon as I touch ya?" He finally asked, the awkwardness finally becoming too much for him to handle.

"Look, I said I was sorry, okay? Jesus, ya really think this is the time to drag out all my personal shit?"

Daryl held both hands up in mock-surrender. "Don't get pissy with me; jus' asked a damn question. Didn't mean nothin' by it. Jus' wanted ta make sure you was a'ight, that's all."

"I ain't gettin' pissy! Ya jus'… startled me is all."

"So…"

"Jus' shut up, a'ight? Said I'm fine, an' I'm fine!" She snapped. "Ya like it if I start askin' a bunch a questions? Want me ta ask 'bout that black eye an' the limp ya got after ya argument with your brother?"

"Jesus Christ, you seriously gonna start this shit 'gain?" Daryl asked angrily.

"Sucks when ya jus' wanna be left alone, an' someone keeps askin' questions, don't it?"

"Ya always this cranky in the mornin', or you jus' on the rag?" He grumbled

"Fuck you," She snapped. "Jus' 'cause I ain't gonna spill my life fuckin' story sittin' in a _tree stand_, in the middle a fuckin' _nowhere_, in the middle of the fuckin' _apocalypse_, don't mean I'm on the damn _rag_!"

The two glared at each other for a few moments, before Jesse looked away, her face turning red. "Look, I said I'm sorry, an' I am, a'ight? Jesus, what time is it?"

"Gotta be close ta six," He muttered, stretching his arms above his head, deciding to play along with her sudden change of topic, at least partially. "Nothin' better than an elbow ta the face, an' a steel-toed boot ta the shin ta wake ya up. Jesus, think you're the first chick I ever seen wearin' steel-toed boots. Jus' my luck, first woman I spend the night with, an' she wears fuckin' _boots_."

Instantly, he regretted his words, as a small grin crossed the girl's face.

"Really? Well, I gotta say, Daryl, I truly am sorry. If I'd known I was ya first co-ed sleep-over, wouldda made it lots more interestin'," She said cheekily. "Maybe give ya a little party or somethin'."

"Jesus... Ya really _are_ crazy, ain't ya?"

She shrugged, still smiling. "C'mon; might as well get a head start on our next meal. I wanna get back ta camp by tonight. By the way... they ain't steel-toed. Pussy."


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Alright, so this chapter is a little weird... little choppy, I'll admit. Seems to be the defining theme in this story lately... Don't know how much longer I'll keep working on this, seeing as how I've currently got two other WD stories going full time, and they're going much better than this one is lol.

* * *

Daryl couldn't help but grin at the change that over-taken the girl as they chased down their prey. They'd been chasing the doe for miles, herding it back towards the camp, the two hunters moving in tandem. As soon as they'd spotted their quarry, she'd seemed more at ease than he'd ever seen her, almost gliding along, her mind totally focused on their target.

"She's gotta drop soon," Jesse muttered, notching another arrow as she stared down at the tracks. "She's got three arrows stickin' outta her flank; surprised she ain't stopped yet."

"Don't complain," Daryl warned, as they started moving forward again. "Further she runs on her own, less time we gotta spend draggin' her back."

"Yeah, an' more of a chance that somethin' else eats her 'fore we do."

"Relax; we're only a few hundred yards from camp. Ain't nothin' gonna get her with us this close."

Jesse snorted. "Yeah, other than Deputy Do Right up there fillin' her with buckshot. C'mon."

* * *

Jesse knew something was wrong the minute they entered camp. The way everyone was staring at Daryl clued her in fairly quick as to what was wrong. The missing face only confirmed her suspicions.

She didn't know if Daryl was purposefully ignoring the looks, as he called out to his brother, or if he really hadn't noticed the others as he scanned the camp looking for Merle, calling out something about the squirrels they'd caught.

"Daryl?" Shane called out. "Slow up a bit... need ta talk ta ya."

She knew he was playing dumb when he asked what Shane wanted to talk to him about. Knew there was no way in hell this was gonna go over smoothly; watching Shane and the new man exchange wary looks, she knew that it wasn't as simple as Walkers. _Shit_.

"Uh... 'bout Merle. There was a problem in Atlanta," Shane said quietly.

God, why couldn't everyone back off, she thought as she moved closer to Daryl. The entire group was staring at him like he'd grown a third head, as he asked, "He dead?"

"We're not sure."

"He either is or he ain't," Daryl snapped. Jesse released a breath she hadn't been aware she was holding as she unsnapped the hook on her knife as inconspicuously as possible, trying to pinpoint the threats. For reasons she couldn't explain, her mind had already been made up about how the situation would play out, and which side she'd fall on.

"No easy way to say this, so I'll just say it."

Both Daryl and Jesse's heads spun around to look at the new guy.

Jesse quickly tuned Daryl out, eyes watching the man's hands as he approached, while maneuvering herself around to keep Shane in sight as well. The black man wasn't in the general vicinity; other than him, Shane and the new man were the only real threats. Morales, Dale, and Glen were easily handled problems.

She didn't need to hear what had happened. As soon as Shane had opened his mouth, she'd known that Merle hadn't been eaten. Hadn't been bit. He'd purposefully been left behind. While she hadn't liked the man -wouldn't be too heart-broken over his death even -the fact that these people had purposefully left someone behind set her teeth on edge. That fact didn't bode well for anyone. She wondered if the rest of the group realized the line that had just been crossed; the rule that had just been created. That if a person disagreed, or wasn't liked... they could easily be gotten rid of. With no attempt to hide it.

But she knew. And she knew there was no way any of this ended well.

She'd braced herself for the inevitable, as Rick told them how he'd handcuffed Merle to a roof. How dangerous he'd been. How he hadn't had a choice.

It really wasn't a conscious decision on her part. Everything happened so quickly, she'd barely had time to think, as Daryl charged at the new guy, and Shane had moved to intercept him. As Shane threw Daryl to the ground, Jesse had moved around to take a swing at other man, satisfaction coursing through her as she felt her fist collide with his jaw.

Next thing she knew, she seen a pair of black arms wrap themselves around her waist, tearing her away from the new guy.

"Get off a me! Let me go!" She screamed, panic overriding rational thought, as she watched Shane and his friend get Daryl in a choke hold. "Get off a him! I'll kill you assholes, you hear me!"

* * *

Shane grunted with the exertion of holding Daryl still, trying to get him to the ground, when he heard T-Dog yelp in pain. Before he could even turn his head to see what was happening, he felt the tip of a knife against his spine, and the girl's arm snaking around his own neck.

"Let him go," The new girl hissed. "Drop him!"

"Hey, hey, hey! Everybody jus' calm down, alright," Rick said soothingly, hands help up placatingly. "Let's jus' all calm down, and talk 'bout this rationally. Ain't nobody gotta get hurt here."

"Best do as he says, Jesse," Shane said quietly. "I ain't gonna hurt him none, jus' need him to relax."

"You're gonna be real relaxed below the waist in a second if ya don't let him go. Do it! Now!"

"Shane... let him go," Rick ordered quietly. "Young lady, we're not here to hurt anybody. Let's just have a rational discussion 'bout this, alright? Can you do that?"

"Fuck you! I said let him -" The girl screamed -in rage, or pain, Shane wasn't sure -and suddenly the girl's arm and knife were gone. Glancing behind him, he seen that Morales had gotten a hold of her, and was pinning her to the ground.

Rick sighed, and moved in closer to Daryl.

"Now look, I wanna have a calm rational discussion about this... Without anybody getting' hurt. Think we can manage that? I don't want you or the girl gettin' hurt, so let's all jus' calm down."

Shane felt a wave of relief, as Daryl finally nodded.

Maybe nobody would have to die after all, he thought grimly, giving Morales a nod to let the girl up.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Alright so thanks to everyone who read, or added me to your respective lists or alerts, special thanks to those of you reviewed. : )

* * *

"I'm goin' with ya."

Daryl looked up at Jesse numbly. "Why? Ya don't even like him. Hell, ya probably happy he got left behind," He said quietly, resuming cleaning his arrows.

Jesus, had it only been a few hours ago that him and Jesse had been tracking their deer? That walker gnawing on it should've told him what kinda day it was gonna be. Should've taken it as a damn sign.

"Ya right. I don't like him. I ain't doin' it for him," She said quietly, dropping to her feet next to him.

"Aw, Jesus, don't tell me ya doin' it for me," He spat angrily, finally meeting her gaze. "I ain't got time for ya crazy shit right now, girly."

"Has nothin' ta do with my 'crazy shit'," She bit out, before turning her eyes back towards the camp. "I ain't stupid, Daryl; they can say what they want, an' the rest of those idiots can fool 'emselves all they want. Basically, what jus' went down was... if somebody decides you're a liability, ya can get left behind as Geek food. Hell, maybe it's easier for the rest of 'em to ignore it... They all got somethin' holdin' 'em to the group."

"The hell ya talkin' 'bout?"

"Turns out the skinny brunette bitch is Rick's wife. Obviously her an' the boy ain't goin' nowhere. Him an' Shane? Best friends. The bimbo sisters? They got Dale lookin' after 'em, an' this group needs Dale's RV, an' mechanic shit. Which gives Jimbo a freebie. Jaquie and T-Dog go with Jimbo, so they're covered. The wife-beater's got his wife an' 'lil girl; ain't nobody gonna leave behind a beat-on mom an' kid. The Asian kid's the only one who knows his way 'round the city, so he's got some use..."

"Ya got a point here, or ya jus' enjoy yakkin' my ear off?" He growled.

"Yeah, I got a point, if ya'd open ya damn ears. I'm jus' as expendable as ya brother was. Expendable as you are. Hell, probably more; took a chunk outta T's arm, popped our new leader in the head, an' tried cuttin' the good Deputy's spine out. Ain't nobody gonna cry if I get left behind. While we may not be best buds or shit, least I know ya ain't gonna leave me behind," She said quietly. "Shit, I dunno why I decided ta fuckin' stay... Definitely not one a my brighter ideas."

Daryl snorted as he stood. "Ain't nobody else gettin' left behind. An' if they try ta leave me or you behind... Ain't _nobody_ comin' back," He said darkly.

Jesse gave him a half-assed grin as she stood, and started back towards the camp, before he called out.

"Why _did_ ya jump in?"

She turned towards him, hesitating for a minute, before finally shrugging. "Wasn't right, them gangin' up on ya like that. 'Specially after what they did ta ya brother. I might be crazy, but at least I'm fair 'bout it. Two on one... That's playin' dirty. Jus'... tryin' to make it a fair fight, I guess."

* * *

"She nicked you, but you'll live," Lori said finally, pulling Shane's shirt back down.

Shane sighed as he looked over at Rick. "Gotta tell ya... I wasn't expectin' nothin' good from Daryl, but her jumpin' in like that... Hell, caught me off guard," He admitted. "Knew she was a tough 'lil bitch, but... Didn't figure she'd try ta gut me."

Rick shrugged. "Can't really blame her," He said slowly. "Definitely could've handled the whole thing a bit better. Hell, we put her friend in a choke hold; what would you do if someone did that to me?"

"Nah, that's jus' it, man... She had some serious problems with Merle; he was followin' her everywhere, watchin' her bathe... Hell, both her an' Daryl threw a fit when I stuck 'em together for the huntin' trip. Shit, this is only day four she's been here."

Lori sighed as she looked at the large bruise forming on Rick's face. "For being cops, sometimes... you two can be pretty dense," She said with a chuckle. When both men looked at her quizzically, she rolled her eyes. "Oh, c'mon now. She's basically a younger, female version of him. Makes sense that out of everyone here, she'd latch on to him. Can you imagine the hell that girl went through out there, two months, all on her own? I don't know if anyone here other than Daryl or Merle would've been able to survive that. She comes here... Sees another person like her, another damaged person, I might add... and then she sees the two of you gang up on him. Of course she went after you."

Shane grunted. "She didn't jus' 'go after us', Lori. She bit a chunk outta T-Dog, an' then pulled a knife on me. Hell, for a minute... I really thought she was gonna use it."

"Then ya smarter than ya look, Deputy."

All three of the older people jumped as the girl appeared out of nowhere, arms folded across her chest, a dark gleam in her eye.

"Jesse, we weren't -"

"Save it," She interrupted Shane with a wave of her hand. "I'm jus' here ta tell ya, I'm goin' with Daryl ta find Merle... an if ya decide ta try an use me or him as Geek food? I know what ya capable of; ya won't catch me off guard. Ya even _think_ 'bout tryin' it, an' I'll give ya seven types a hell, ya understand me?"

Rick stood, guilt written across his face as he took a step towards the small girl, stopping abruptly as her left hand strayed towards the large buck knife on her hip.

"Look, I didn't want to leave Merle behind, alright? It wasn't intentional, it was... It was an accident. A screw up, all the way 'round, alright?"

"Accident, huh? So I suppose those handcuffs jus' jumped out at him all on they own, huh? Ya had nothin' ta do with it," She said scornfully.

Rick sighed, looking away for a moment, before meeting her gaze again. "No. I did handcuff him there. He was a danger to the group; he was gonna get somebody killed."

"An' who gets ta decide who's dangerous, huh?" She demanded quietly. " 'Cause I bet if ya ask ya wife, or ya friend, they's both thinkin' I ain't exactly safe ta have 'round right now."

"He wasn't supposed to get left behind. When T-Dog dropped the key... If we'd stayed, we all would've died on that roof. Hell, I'm goin' back with y'all; that's gotta count for somethin', right?"

She gave him an appraising look, before nodding. "Ya jus' 'member what I said."

And just as quickly as she'd appeared, she was gone again.

Rick chuckled as he turned back towards his wife and best friend. "Well, I suppose I've been told, huh?"

Shane gave him a dark grin. "Tell ya what though, gotta admit I was kinda impressed. She ain't jus' talk; hell, she can't be much more than 5'2", buck twenty soakin' wet, an' wrapped in a wool blanket, an' she got the drop on both a us."

Rick only nodded in agreement as he rubbed at the large bruise forming on his cheek.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Alright, so first: shout outs to everyone who reviewed, with a special shout out to psychovampgurl, our newest reviewer. : ) Anyways, now that I've gotten this to where I want it, it'll be moving a long a bit more quickly now, following along with the show for the most part, with minor changes thrown in here and there. I know this chapter is relatively short, but it was the perfect place to end it. Thanks for reading, special thanks for reviewing. : )

* * *

"What first: guns or Merle?"

"Merle!" Daryl snapped as they all moved through the fence. "We ain't even _havin_' this discussion."

"We are!" Rick barked back, turning to look at Glen. "You know the way; your choice."

Jesse scoffed as she notched an arrow. "Ya gotta be kiddin' me," She grunted. "Merle's already been up there close ta twenty-four hours without food or water in this damn heatwave; we get him first, or we's gonna have ourselves another little of a dust up, an' you ain't got your butt-buddy here ta cheat for ya this time," She said dangerously.

She met Rick's eyes, returning his glare with one of her own, refusing to be cowed. She felt more than heard Daryl move around behind her, as T-Dog slid behind Rick.

"Whoa!" Glen exclaimed nervously, stepping in between the two groups. "Look, Merle's closer; we'd have to double back for him otherwise. So we get Merle first."

Still not breaking Rick's gaze, Jesse pasted a smile onto her face. "Well then... Guess that's settled. Maybe we can avoid wastin' anymore time arguin' over stupid shit. Now where the hell did ya leave him, China Man?"

As one, the group started moving again, Glen taking the lead, Daryl falling in behind him, followed by T-Dog. Jesse and Rick kept pace with each other, neither willing to let the other one at their back.

"On top of the Macy's department store. We'll get Merle, go down the fire escape, and cut through the alleys to get the guns."

"An' where'd Deputy Dumbo drop said bag of guns?"

"The intersection of Sampson and Ninth."

Jesse groaned inwardly. Of course. Right in the heart of downtown. "Well, gonna be an interestin' day at least," She muttered, unconsciously letting her fingers run over the fletching of her arrow, the familiar gesture doing nothing nothing to ease the jittery feeling in her gut.

"We'll go in the side door we left out of," Glen called quietly as they neared their destination. "Hopefully the Geeks have moved on."

"Alright, everybody get ready," Rick said authoritatively, pulling out his gun.

Jesse snorted, pointedly glancing at her still-notched bow, and letting that look move to Daryl. The two of them at least had been 'ready' since the moment they'd stepped out of the truck. She was starting to understand why Merle had given the group such hell; it was amazing any of them were still alive, she thought, staring at T-Dog with nothing more than his bolt cutters, and the Asian with...

"Are ya shittin' me?!" She hissed at Rick, stopping dead in the alley, ignoring the looks everyone was giving her. "Tell me ya gave the kid somethin' more than that damn _pocket knife_ ta defend himself with."

Rick looked at her guiltily. "I uh... I didn't really think about it," He finally muttered.

Jesse glared at him for a moment, before unsnapping the knife at her waist, and offering it to the kid. "Here," She said sharply. "I ain't gonna spend the whole damn time watchin' your ass. Ya get eaten, that can be on Deputy Dumbo's head; not mine."

Daryl tapped his foot impatiently. "If y'all are done actin' like ol' grannies, I'd like ta go get my damn brother," He snapped, shoving open the door, and stepping inside, followed closely by Glen and T-Dog.

"After you," Rick said with a tight smile, holding the door open.

"Nah, that's okay. You first," Jesse replied sweetly. "Seein' as I've never left anyone ta die, I think it's best if I bring up the rear. So. After you, Deputy."

"Both a ya, move ya asses!" Came Daryl's hissed response from inside. "Ain't got time for this shit!"

After a moment's hesitation, Rick moved in, Jesse closely on his heels.

* * *

Jesse kept her back to the rest of the group as they moved up the staircase, eyes moving constantly as she walked backwards. They'd only encountered one walker – and Daryl had made quick work of it – but she didn't like the bad feeling building in her stomach. From what the others had said, when they'd left, the place had been practically overrun with Biters; to find only one lone walker in the whole building didn't sit well. The Geeks wouldn't have just left, not without something distracting them. Something like... oh say, _fresh meat_?

"C'mon, butterfingers" She finally hissed as T-Dog fumbled with the bolt cutters at the door, her stomach positively churning now. The only sound to be heard was that of the chain, and their own breathing; delirious from lack of water, Merle should've been hollering, moaning, screaming... _something_. _Anything_. A quick glance at Rick, and she could tell he was thinking the same thing. A few more seconds of fumbling, and she heard the sound of the lock snapping.

Daryl didn't wait; he bolted out the door, shouting loudly for his older brother.

"Daryl, wait!" Jesse called after him, shoving past the three other men to follow him out. She stopped dead as she hit the bottom of the ramp, the coppery, tangy smell of blood assailing her nose, as she stared at the large hand laying underneath the swinging handcuffs.

"No!" Daryl screamed. "No!"


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Alright, so thanks to everyone who read, special shout outs to the reviewers. : )

* * *

Jesse couldn't move as she stared at Daryl, who was clearly only holding on by a damn thread. And unfortunately she didn't see Rick and T-Dog slide by her until it was too late.

"No!" She barked, grabbing for T's arm. But it was already too late, as Daryl's bow swung up, the arrow dancing a mere few inches from the black man's head. Rick's gun came up just as quickly.

_This jus' ain't gonna work_, she thought desperately as she aimed her own bow at Rick. Screw the Geeks, the damn _group_ was gonna kill each other off long 'fore the geeks even _found_ 'em.

"I won't hesitate," Rick said quietly, looking at Daryl, but Jesse wasn't sure if he was talking to the hunter or her. "I don't care if every walker in the city hears it."

Moving so that Rick was still in her line of fire, Jesse scooted down the steps, heart pounding in her chest, praying that the Asian kid stayed where he was, out of the turkey shoot that was about to start. At that close range, Daryl's bolt would rip through T-Dog's head just as efficiently as the gun Rick held would do to Daryl's head. Just as her arrow would do to Rick's head. _Fuck_.

"Daryl," She said, a hell of a lot more calmly then she felt, keeping her gaze locked on Rick. "C'mon, now. This ain't gonna help us find Merle. It ain't his fault. Merle could still be 'round here somewhere. Let's jus' calm down, a'ight?"

The next few seconds felt like a lifetime, as three armed, and one unarmed man stared silently at each other, before Daryl finally lowered his crossbow, followed by Rick holstering his gun. It took her a minute to realize why all eyes had turned to her, and she quickly lowered her own bow, sucking in a breath for the first time since she'd spoken.

"You uh... you got a do rag or somethin'?" Daryl finally asked, his voice deceptively calm as he stared numbly at the man he'd almost killed, and Jesse found herself praying that for his own sake, T-Dog did in fact have some sort of bandanna When the black man pulled a blue rag out of his pocket, and handed it to the hunter, Daryl dropped down by the severed, and still-bleeding hand.

"I uh... guess the saw blade was too dull for the handcuffs. Ain't that a bitch," He muttered, staring at the hand for a moment, before gently wrapping it up.

Jesse shot Glen a look of death as Daryl moved behind him to put the hand in the bag, willing the Asian to keep his damn mouth shut. Glen swallowed a few times, but kept still.

"He musta used a tourniquet," Jesse said quietly, dropping to her feet, and cautiously dipping two fingers in the blood smears. "This ain't more than a few hours old."

"Probably used his belt," Daryl said in agreement, his voice still raw with unshed emotions, as he moved towards the door at the opposite end of the roof.

Jesse spared the other members of the group one last glare, before following Daryl down into the bowels of the building.

She didn't have the heart to tell Daryl that they needed to be quiet as he called out for his brother; at this point, it probably didn't matter much anyways, so if it made him feel better... If it kept him from drawing on T-Dog again. If it kept that thread in place.

But Deputy Dumbo couldn't keep his mouth shut.

"We're not alone here," He said warningly, ignoring the dark looks Jesse shot him.

"Screw that; he could be bleedin' out, ya said so yourself," Daryl said absently as they stepped inside what had once been a reception area for something. "Had enough ta take out these two sum bitches. One handed. Toughest asshole, I ever met, my brother. Feed him a hammer, he'd crap out nails."

"Any man can pass out from blood loss," Rick said quietly, moving forward as he took point. "No matter how tough he is."

They stayed silent as they traversed through the hallways, until they came upon what had obviously been a kitchen at one point.

_Oh God_. Jesse's stomach began heaving as the familiar, acrid odor of burnt flesh seeped into her mouth and nose. _Shit_.

"I... I'll... Outside," She finally managed, shoving past Rick and Daryl, and through the double doors on the other side of the room.

Trying hard as hell to get the image of the bloody, flesh-covered piece of metal sitting by the lit stove, she began puking up the little bit of food she'd eaten in the past few days, her vision swimming with black spots.

"Pull it together, Princess."

Despite his words, Daryl's eyes held a bit of sympathy as he stopped next to her, the rest of the group standing behind him.

Jesse straightened, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, forcing a half-assed smile to her face. "Sorry. I forgot how bad ya brother smells," She said weakly, taking a few deep breaths.

Daryl chuckled, and Jesse could see the surprise on the others faces. Ignoring them, she pointed towards the window at the end of the hall. "Musta gone out there; went down the fire escape."

"He left the building?! Why the hell would he do that?!" Glen asked in amazement, as they all peered out the window.

Jesse scoffed as she backed away, sliding her bow over her shoulder. "Why the hell wouldn't he? Y'all left him here; far as he knows, he's out there on his own."

Daryl nodded in agreement, as he started down the hall. "He's jus' doin' what he's gotta do. Survivin'."

"Ya call that 'survivin'?" T-Dog asked incredulously. "Jus' wanderin' out in the streets, maybe passin' out? What're his odds out there?"

"No worse then bein' handcuffed, and left to rot by you sorry pricks!" Daryl snapped, getting in the black man's face again. Jesse couldn't help the small feeling of satisfaction at the guilty look on the others faces. "You couldn't kill him. Ain't worried 'bout some dead bastard."

"What 'bout a thousand undead bastards?" Rick asked quietly, calmly meeting Daryl's eyes. "That a different story?"

"Why don't ya take a tally? Do what ya want. I'm gonna go get him."

"I'll go with ya," Jesse said quietly, moving back towards the window.

"Wait!" Rick snapped, grabbing her arm and yanking her away from the window.

"Get your hands off her!"

Jesse held her hand up, as she shook herself free of Rick's grip, motioning for Daryl to relax. "Ya got somethin' ta say, Deputy?" She asked menacingly.

Rick glared for a moment, before turning his attention back to Daryl.

"I don't blame you. Look, he's family, an' I get that. I went through hell to find mine. I know _exactly_ how you feel. Now he can't get far with that injury. We can help you check a few blocks around, but only if we keep a level head!"

Daryl only hesitated for a moment, before nodding. "I can do that."

Rick turned to look at Glen and T-Dog. Glen was still looking slightly sick as he nodded, but T-Dog was silent for a few seconds, before throwing his hands up in surrender.

"Only if we get those guns first," He said slowly. "I'm not strolling the streets of Atlanta with just my good intentions, okay?"

Daryl scoffed as he started moving back towards the hall. "Yeah, it'd suck if ya had ta go out there... unarmed, or somethin'."

Jesse rolled her eyes, shaking her head at T's flinch, as she followed after Daryl.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Yay for long chapter? And two in a matter of a few hours? Y'all love me, yes? Enough to leave me many, many reviews? : D

* * *

"We need some sorta plan," Jesse said, as they stared out the window at the intersection below. Just as she'd predicted, walkers were everywhere. "Even then... this is gonna fuckin' suck."

"I... I got a plan."

All eyes turned towards Glen in surprise, and the Asian shifted from foot to foot nervously, clearly uncomfortable with being the center of attention.

Jesse sighed as she stepped away from the window. "A'ight. Let's hear it." When the shocked looks turned towards her, she shrugged. "Ain't like anybody else is volunteerin' any ideas. An' the longer we stare out that damn window tryin' ta come up with somethin', more chance we got a not makin' it back in one piece. So what's ya master plan?" She directed towards Glen, kneeling down next to him on the floor.

"Well... it's actually pretty simple," Glen stuttered nervously. "You guys wait in the alleys, I run out, grab the guns, and run back."

Jesse stared at him blankly. "That ain't a damn plan," She finally said. "That's... Shit, that's jus' fuckin' stupid."

Rick held one hand up to quiet her. "You're not doin' this alone," He said to Glen, shaking his head.

"Hell, even I think it's a bad idea, an' I don't like you much," Daryl muttered.

"It's a good idea, if you'd just hear me out!" Glen said desperately, grabbing a marker off one of the desks. The group watched silently as he drew a few squares on the floor. Finally, he looked up again. "If we go out there in a group, we're slow, drawing attention. If I'm alone, I can move fast. Look. This is the tank. This is the bag of guns. This is the alley I dragged Rick into when we first met. I'll go there with Daryl and Jesse."

"Why us?" Daryl asked curiously, staring at the make-shift map.

"Because your bows are quieter than his gun."

Jesse glanced up at Daryl. "Got a point there."

"Anyways," Glen said pointedly, before continuing, "While you two wait in the alley, I run up the street, grab the bag. Simple."

"But... you got me and T-Dog elsewhere?" Rick asked slowly.

"Yeah. You two will go back out the way we came in, and end up here," He said, dropping an eraser two squares away from the paperclip representing the tank.

"Two blocks away? Why?"

"Because I might not be able to come back the same way. The Walkers might cut me off. So if that happens, I won't go back to Daryl and Jesse; I'll keep going forward, all the way to the alley where you guys are. Whichever direction I go, I'm covered. Afterwards, we all meet back here."

"Hey kid... What'd you do before all this?" Daryl asked after a few moments of silence.

Glen frowned as he looked up from his map. "Delivered pizzas. Why?"

Jesse bit back a sharp laugh. "Great. Saved by the pizza boy."

Glen gave her a tight smile. "Hey, we always deliver."

* * *

Jesse frowned as she dared a glance over the top of the garbage can, swearing quietly at the sight of at least half a dozen Geeks roaming around.

"You sure you wanna do this?" She asked Glen roughly, fitting an arrow in her bow.

Glen swallowed thickly, but nodded. "Yeah."

"Ya got some balls for a China Man," Daryl said, his voice sounding mildly impressed as he glanced over at Glen.

"I'm Korean."

"Whatever."

Jesse waited until the Asian had darted around the corner, before turning to Daryl. "Ya realize the one serious problem with this plan – other than the whole damn thing – is that we can't see him, right? Can't give him cover unless we want the Geeks ta see us."

Daryl grunted. "Too late now."

Suddenly, Daryl shoved her back roughly against the wall, as he plastered himself against the back of the bin, making walking motions with his hand. Jesse nodded, and simultaneously, the two stood.

"Whoa, don't shoot me! What do you want?!"

_Shit_. Jesse mentally cursed as she took in the sight of the small, thin boy – probably only a few years younger than herself, if she was being honest – but kept her bow aimed at his head.

"Lookin' for my brother. He's hurt real bad. Ya seen him?" Daryl demanded roughly, moving in closer.

To both of their surprise, the kid started yelling something in another language.

"Shut him up!" Jesse hissed, glancing over her shoulder at the Geeks just outside the fence.

"Shut up, or ya gonna bring the Geeks down on us! Now answer me! Ya seen my brother?"

"Ayuda me! Ayuda me!"

"Shut him up, dammit!"

Daryl took a step forward, and slammed the butt of his bow across the kid's face knocking him to the ground. Jesse turned to look for Glen, when a large, meaty fist knocked her into the wall. Instantly, her vision blurred, as blood began dripping into her eyes

"Daryl!" Her warning came too late, as she barely made out one of two large Mexicans sink a booted foot into Daryl's rib cage, knocking him over.

She forced herself to her feet, feeling the blood beginning to gush down her forehead, as she stumbled towards the man holding the bat.

"Leave him 'lone!" She yelled, rushing him in a tackle.

_Holy shit._ The guy was built like a brick shit house, she thought, as her shoulder collided with his side. The guy didn't even budge, instead turning the bat on her, smashing the aluminum weapon into her gut, sending her crashing to the ground again.

"That's him! That's the bag!"

Jesse glanced up, and seen a clearly panicked and surprised Glen. "Run, dammit!" She screamed, trying to find her feet again, and failing miserably. She made it to her knees, before stumbling again.

But the men were on him in an instant, the larger of the two men swinging the bat with deadly accuracy, as he dropped Glen with one solid blow to his knees.

"Jesse, down!" Daryl barked. She didn't hesitate, as she dropped back down, practically kissing the ground, hearing the _thwack_ of Daryl's bow firing. A second later, she heard one of the Mexicans yelp in pain.

"Daryl! Jesse!" Glen yelled in a panic, as the two men dragged him towards a car that'd appeared from nowhere. "_Daryl_!"

"Daryl, walkers!" Jesse snapped, still trying to pull herself to her feet, as Daryl yanked the gate closed.

"Ya alright?" He asked, bolting past her towards the kid, who was now standing... at least until Daryl threw him into the wall again.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Rick shouted, and Jesse forced herself to locate where the voice was coming from, as her vision started going black. She forced a hand to her forehead, and grimaced as she felt something gooey above her eye.

"I'm gonna kick your nuts straight up into your throat!" Daryl barked, and almost absently, Jesse realized his voice was coming from her left again. "They took Glen! Little bastard called in his homie friends! I'm gonna stomp your fuckin' ass, ya hear me?!"

"Guys, we're cut off!"

Huh. Apparently T-Dog had come to join the party. Then who was watching the other alley for Glen?

"Jesse? Hey, can you hear me?" She was almost positive it was Rick's voice, almost positive it was his face flashing in and out of her field of sight.

"Supposed ta be... watchin' for Glen," She said thickly, her head still swimming. "Gotta... Cover..."

* * *

Daryl groaned as he swung his crossbow over his back, grabbing Jesse's, and swinging it onto his shoulder. "Move it!" He barked at Rick. "I got the girl!"

Ignoring the pain in his ribs, he yanked the girl up, throwing her over his shoulder. Thank Christ she was small; as it was, it felt like somebody was carving a chunk out of his side with every movement as he limped towards the door. But somehow, he made it inside, hearing the sound of a lock turning as Rick locked the door behind him.

"Put... Put me down," He heard Jesse say weakly.

"Shit, girly, you make me drag your ass in here for nothin'?" He asked with a chuckle, swinging her down off his shoulder, and setting her in a chair. "Holy shit!"

Jesse looked up at him, panic written in her eyes. "What? What?! Is it bad?" She said raspily.

"Uh... nope. You're gonna be fine," Daryl forced the words from his mouth, staring at the huge gash above her eye. Shit. "Um.. Anybody got a needle an' thread, or somethin' I can use as a big ass bandage?" He called to Rick and T-Dog.

"Oh fuck," Jesse moaned, reaching a hand up to feel her face. Daryl grabbed her arm, and held it firmly.

"Trus' me: ya don't wanna be touchin' that."


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Alright so a few things... Firstly (obviously) thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed, with another special shout out to Al Harris. : ) Secondly, the next chapter to this is going to jump forward to their trip to the CDC, and move on from there. Thirdly... This is the last chapter I'll be posting for a few days. I've got three stories going right now, with a few one-shots I'm working on, and my thoughts are getting all jumbled, and nothing is moving in the direction I want it to. So... yeah. I'm gonna take a few days to get everything together, get the plot bunnies back in line and what not. So y'all will have to wait until at least Wednesday for another chapter. : (

* * *

"How you feeling?"

Jesse growled up at T-Dog, ignoring the interaction between Daryl, Rick, and the little Mexican gang-banger across the room, as she sat holding a folded up piece of her shirt sleeve against the wound on her head.

"I'll be fine. Quit hoverin'."

In truth, she _wasn't_ fine, and she knew it. Her ears hadn't stopped ringing, her vision was fading in and out of focus, and the wave of nausea rolling through her made her glad she'd already thrown up earlier. But she wasn't about to tell the others, for two reasons. Firstly, she wasn't going to be the one to slow down the search for Merle, or the rescue attempt for Glen. The second one, she was almost sure, was the reason her stomach was queasy... If they knew how bad she was, chances were good, they'd leave her behind.

Grunting with the effort, she forced herself to her feet, shoving T-Dog's helping hand aside. "I said, I'm fine," She snapped, pushing herself away from the wall, taking a few unsteady steps closer to the rest of the group.

"He said anythin' yet?"

T-Dog rolled his eyes with a chuckle. "Yeah, after Daryl threw Merle's hand at him, he broke like the dams in New Orleans."

"Hey, who's the chica?" The boy asked with a leer, his eyes playing the elevator game.

Jesse grunted, a wave of pain coursing through her skull, as she lashed out with a left hook, knocking the kid out of his chair.

"Your 'essays' jus' smashed my face up, took a baseball bat ta me an' my friend over there..." She said quietly. "So I'd suggest ya keep ya mouth shut, unless I ask ya a damn question. Comprende, amigo?"

* * *

Rick was worried, to say the least, as he watched the small girl sway on her feet, obviously trying to keep herself upright.

"Jesse... They told us where they're holdin' him," He said softly. "It's 'bout a half mile from here." He didn't miss the slight twitch of the girl's cheek, before continuing, "You gonna be up to taking a trip that far?"

She scoffed, still holding the checkered black and blue sleeve to her head with one hand, the other bracing herself on the desk. "I said I'm fine. Ya lead the way; I'll bring up the rear," She said harshly.

Rick glanced over at Daryl, willing the other man to say something. He had to know, just as Rick did, that Jesse wasn't up for a trip to the _door_, much less one half a mile in the blistering heat, into God only knows what type of situation they'd be facing when they got there.

But – while the hunter didn't say anything – the dark look in his eyes told Rick everything he needed to know. If Daryl had to carry Jesse himself, Rick knew that's what it would come down to. Knew that if he tried pushing the issue, they were going to have another blow up, something that needed avoiding at all costs.

So he sighed. "Alright. But let's see if we can rig up somethin' better for your head; not gonna be much use to anybody one handed."

"Too bad ya didn't think a that 'fore ya left Merle behind." Despite the words, Rick could tell the girl's heart wasn't in it, and that made him even more concerned as she plopped down in a chair. "Well, go on then. See what ya can do."

Instantly, Rick could feel Daryl breathing down his neck, the closeness of the other man stifling, but he kept silent as he carefully started peeling the bloody sleeve away. Jesse hissed, her face contorting in pain, but she gave him a silent nod to continue.

Once he had finally peeled the cloth off, he couldn't help the grimace. Apparently, she'd hit something fairly sharp – maybe an uneven piece of concrete – because the two inch gash was clearly just that; while rough, there was a clear, distinct slice in the flesh just above her eye, maybe a half inch wide, still leaking blood.

"T-Dog, do we have anything long enough that I could wrap around her head in the backpack?" He asked, gently prodding the wound with his fingers, peering closely to look for any errant pieces of concrete or dirt, feeling a small bit of relief when he didn't find anything.

"Um... Just the... Just the bandanna," T-Dog said uncomfortably, holding up the blood stained rag. "Unless Daryl wanted to..." He stopped, swallowing, unsure of how to continue.

"If ya gonna tie that damn thing ta my head, you's gonna cover the damn cut first," Jesse grunted, cutting the awkward silence. "Lord only knows the diseases runnin' 'round in Merle Dixon's blood."

"Can't use that ta tie 'round your head, dumb-ass," Daryl said with a snort. "Ain't long 'nough. Anythin' else in there?" T-Dog shook his head, and Rick could see both Daryl and Jesse's shoulders droop a bit.

He was silent for a few minutes, desperately trying to think of something he could use to bind the wound. Finally though, the girl swatted his hands away, forcing herself to her feet.

"Jus' leave it," She said roughly, the paleness of her face contrasting sharply with the blood dripping down her eyebrow, past the corner of her eye, and down the bridge of her nose. "We ain't got time for this shit. Lord only knows what this piece of shit's friends are doin' ta Glen. I'll be fine," She bit out, aiming a kick at the Mexican, who had been silently – and probably fearfully – watching the exchange between the group.

"Ain't like we got much choice," Daryl said with a shrug. "Jus' keep ya damn fingers outta it, ya hear?"

"Yeah, sure, ma," Jesse huffed sarcastically. "Now which one a these guns am I takin'?"

Rick sighed, knowing his concern was wasted. "Whatever one you're comfortable with, I guess," He said defeatedly.

The grin she sent him as she picked up the 20 gauge shotgun, testing the weight against her shoulder for a minute, did nothing to soothe the sinking feeling in his gut.

* * *

"Why ain't ya takin' ya bow?"

Jesse kept her eyes trained on the little pipsqueak's back, as she debated whether or not to answer Daryl's question. Finally, she sighed.

"Way my eyes're workin' right now... Shit, probably couldn't hit the broad side of a damn barn," She muttered. "Nice thing 'bout shotguns... Aim don't really mean shit."

She heard him grunt. "That's comfortin'."

"Shut up."


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: Alright, so yes, this is kind of a filler chapter... But I thought y'all needed a bit more insight into Jesse, and this seemed like a perfect place to do it. : ) And yes, I lied about taking a break... I was up all night, figured I might as well do something useful. And writing seemed like a much better idea than doing laundry or dishes. -_- Thanks to everyone who's read, and special thanks to everyone who's reviewed. : )

* * *

Jesse stifled a groan as she hopped into the passenger side of Daryl's beat up truck, her newly cleaned and bandaged head still aching as she strapped herself in, before daring a look over at her travel-mate.

"Think they'll make it?" She asked Daryl quietly, peering out the back at the Morales family, as the hunter threw the truck in gear.

"Honestly? No," He said quietly, as they began the slow and steady procession down the mountain. "There's too many of 'em to sneak through, but not enough to bust through. An' Alabama's a long way off."

Jesse sighed, pulling her gaze away from the small family, and forcing herself to watch the road. "Yeah. That's what I thought."

It'd been a long few days, that was the only thing Jesse knew at that particular point. Between rescuing Glen from the wanna-be gangsters, finding out Merle had stolen their damn van, the grueling run back to camp... The last thing she'd remembered clearly from that night was removing the head of a walker that'd been chewing on the younger blonde sister.

They said she'd passed out, which she figured had to be at least partially true, since next thing she knew, she'd been waking up in the RV.

* * *

"She's so young. Did anybody ever ask how old she was?"

Jesse barely heard the words, like they were coming through a fog. She heard somebody mumble something, and then the woman's voice again.

"She'll be fine. The cut wasn't that deep. Probably passed out from exhaustion and blood loss. No infection."

Jesse forced open one eye. "Quit... talkin' 'bout me," She muttered, her voice sounding weak to her own ears, as she stared into the faces of Rick and his wife.

"Hey! How you feeling?" Rick asked, smiling as he knelt down by the bed.

She grunted. "Like I got my head bashed off a buildin'. How's... How many...?" She couldn't force herself to ask. She knew she'd been too late to save the younger sister; the Geek had taken a chunk out of her before Jesse'd gotten there.

Rick sighed. "You... well, you got the one that got Amy, but... It was too late. Another one got Ed. Carol's husband," He supplied, at the confused look on her face.

"No great loss there. The kids all okay?"

Lori smiled at her, grasping her hand firmly. "Yeah. They are. Because of you."

Jesse pulled her hand away, uncomfortable with the contact. "Wha'?"

"After you killed the Walker who got Amy... You grabbed Morales' kids outta their tent; got 'em into the RV. Fought off three Walkers," Rick said with a smile. "You probably saved their lives. Morales and his wife... They couldn't get to the tent. Those kids would be dead without you."

"Weren't nothin'," Jesse said uncomfortably, forcing herself to sit up, shoving away Lori and Rick's concerned hands. "I'm fine. I want outta here."

"Maybe you should just take it easy for a while. Get some rest," Lori said unsurely.

"I said I'm fine. Ain't gonna sit locked up in here like a cripple. 'Sides... figure there's probably lotta work needs doin' out there."

* * *

"Ain't our problem no more."

Daryl's quiet voice pulled Jesse out of her thoughts, and she sighed, knowing the older man was right.

"Yeah. Jus' don't understand..." She stopped, laughing a little bit at the absurdity of what she'd been about to say. "Hell, don't nothin' make sense anymore."

"Like anythin' did before the world ended?" Daryl asked her, one eyebrow raised, a small smirk playing at the corners of his lip.

"True." She paused unsurely for a moment, before quietly asking, "Ya mind if I ask ya somethin'?"

Daryl grunted. "Got at least a three hour drive 'head a us. Better than listenin' ta the sound a silence."

She wasn't sure if that was a yes or a no, but decided to ask anyways. "Why are we goin' ta the CDC?"

" 'Cause they think they can save ol Jimbo."

Jesse rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I get why _they's_ goin'. I asked why _we_ was goin'. They ain't nothin' ta us, an' rollin' back through Atlanta? Sorry, jus' seems like a piss poor choice all the way 'round ta me."

Daryl was silent for a few minutes, his gaze locked on the road. Even when he finally did speak, he didn't look at her.

"Look... We both know that the damn Geeks didn't jus' wander up ta camp. Ain't nobody said it, but me, you, Rick, an' the other two? We know how an' why they got ta camp."

"Yeah, an' you ain't responsible for what Merle did," Jesse said sharply, not liking the way Daryl's mind was working. "Hell if everyone was responsible for what they family did, ain't nobody innocent. Sides, ya tried ya best ta stop him. Ya ain't ya brother's keeper."

Daryl chuckled, glancing over at her. "Didn't figure ya for the bible type."

She laughed, before pulling her green rosary out from underneath her shirt. "Catholic. Mama took me an' my sister ta mass every mornin'. Kept the habit, no matter where I ended up."

"Catholic, huh? Gotta say, never wouldda pegged ya for a bible thumper," He said with a grin.

" 'Cause I ain't. I jus' figure... Everybody's gotta have somethin', right? I mean, hell, even _you_ gotta believe in somethin'."

"What, like religion? No way, princess. I don't buy in ta the whole idea of some all-powerful bein' livin' in the sky, watchin' for us ta fuck up."

"So what do ya believe in?" At the look on his face, Jesse laughed. "C'mon. _Everybody_ believes in somethin'."

"I believe in doin' what ya gotta do. Whatever it takes ta make it through the day, an' still bein' able ta sleep with ya self when it's all over. That's 'bout all I believe in. Seen too much shit ta think anythin' else. Ya tellin' me, ya can look 'round at all this shit goin' down, all the shit that people do ta each other, an' still believe in a kind an' lovin' God lookin' out for ya?" Daryl asked curiously.

Jesse sighed. "Look... I know it sounds weird an' all... But I guess it's jus'... If I don't think there's anythin' after this... That I die, an' somebody jus' drops me in a hole, covers me up with some dirt, an' that's it... What's the point a livin'? If this is all there is? I mean, lets be honest... I think we know each other well enough ta say that even before the Dead started walkin' 'round, what we had wasn't all that great. So if that's all there is ta life... Why fight?"

"So... Ya believe 'cause life sucks? Hell, that's gotta be 'bout the most fucked up reason for believin' in God that I ever heard."

"Yeah, well –" She cut off sharply as the vehicles started pulling off to the side. "Shit. What the hell?"

Daryl groaned as he pulled the truck over. "Ya gotta be kiddin' me."


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: Yay for another chapter? : D

* * *

"Ya comin'?" Daryl demanded as he went to get out of the truck.

Jesse shrugged. "Why?"

"Whatever. Suit ya self."

And she does. She ain't stupid; she knows why they pulled over, and sitting in the silent truck, watching the huddled group, she curses 'em all out in the most colorful terms she can think of.

Hope. Most useless emotion known to man. Made people blind to the truth staring 'em in the eye. There wasn't no damn cure; if there was, they wouldn't be in the boat they're all in. All they're doing is dragging out Jim's pain and suffering. Dragging out their own, in some pitiful attempt to stop the inevitable.

Even though she'd kept her damn mouth shut back at the camp, silently, she'd agreed with Daryl. Kindest thing to do would have been to put a bullet – or an arrow – through his head right then and there. Save him a lot of pain. Save him from knowing what was gonna happen; what he was gonna turn in to in a matter of hours.

Would've saved the group some heart-ache. Not that she really gave a shit one way or another, but she knew the havoc it had to be playing on their emotions. Watching a friend die, unable to do anything to stop it. Watching as his kind, gentle eyes glassed over, going white, dull, and blank.

And for what? They'd have to put him down anyways.

Delaying the fuckin' inevitable.

* * *

Daryl was silent as he jumped back in the truck, every part of his brain screaming at him for being nine kinds of foolish. No matter which way a person spun it, what they were doing was wrong. Whether you took the damn humane view, or the practical view, it was stupid. Leaving him to die, all alone on a deserted stretch of road. Leaving him to turn into another rotting corpse that would eat any of 'em in a second, without thought.

"So they's jus' leavin' him then?"

He glanced over at the small, black-haired girl, who was running her fingers over her little beaded cross thing.

"Yeah. So much for ya damn God, huh? Sure as hell didn't do ol' Jimbo any good," He grunted, turning the key, and revving the engine.

The silence in the truck made the rest of the two hour trip nearly unbearable.

* * *

"Ya ready?"

Jesse nodded, a lump forming in her throat as Daryl shut the truck off.

_God, she hated hospitals_. She almost laughed at the stupidity of the thought, a small chuckle escaping despite her best efforts. When Daryl gave her a questioning look, she just shook her head.

"Nothin'... Let's jus' get this done an' over with, so we can get outta here," She said quietly.

"A'ight. Let's roll," He said, cocking his crossbow, and loading an arrow.

As she opened the door, the smell of rotting flesh filled the cab, making her bit back a gag. As she exited, her heart sank, taking in all the dead bodies littered around the large glass building.

"Well that ain't a good sign," She muttered, as her and Daryl jogged towards the rest of the group. "Don't look like this place takes too kindly ta strangers."

"Keep ya damn mouth shut, an' ya eyes open," Daryl snapped back, giving her a rough shove forward.

She ignored him as she knelt down by a camo-wearing body, gingerly wiping the blood and lord knows what else off of its shirt, her heart dropping as she read the patch.

"These ain't National Guard," She said as she caught back up with Daryl, who was giving her a death glare. "Those're Marines."

"Like it makes a damn bit a difference?" He snorted. "Dead is dead; don't matter what they was before."

"Yeah it does. It means... Protecting the CDC... Hell, anythin' State-side... this wouldda been National Guard... Unless Washington ran outta Guards ta send," She said quietly.

Daryl gave her a sideways glance, as they caught up to the group. "Don't think now's the best time ta be sayin' shit like that," He said sharply, almost under his breath.

She jumped a bit as Rick started banging on the shutters. "Jesus, knock it off!" She snapped, moving towards Rick and Shane. "Ya gonna bring every damn Geek in the city here!"

"There's nobody here," T-Dog said raggedly.

"Then why are these shutters down?" Rick asked quietly, as he and Shane tried forcing the doors open.

"Walkers!"

Jesse turned at Daryl's warning, just in time to watch his bolt tear through a Geek's head.

* * *

"Ya lead us in ta a damn graveyard!" Daryl snapped, every warning bell in his head going off, as he backed towards the group. Shit, how many of the corpses that they'd just walked by were actually dead?

For some God forsaken reason, he found himself moving towards Jesse, who had crouched down, aiming her bow at another corpse pulling itself up off the ground, half of its face missing.

"He made a call!" Shane barked back, moving away from the door.

"Well it was a shitty fuckin' call!" Jesse bit out, seconds before letting her arrow loose.

"Both a you, jus' shut up! Shut up, ya hear me?!" The deputy snapped, moving closer to them threateningly. Daryl held his ground, glaring at the two men who'd lead them into a Goddamn death trap, before turning back to Jesse, ignoring the bickering that started.

"Let's get outta here," He said quickly, grabbing her arm, and hauling her to her feet. "The rest of y'all wanna stay an' be dinner, be my damn guest!"

"Wait a minute! The camera! It moved!"

"It's probably motion sensor, dumb-ass! Now c'mon!" Jesse snapped, moving towards the children and their mothers, herding them back towards the vehicles. "We stay here, ya gonna be responsible for these kids' deaths! Move it!"

And then, to Daryl's eternal surprise... the doors opened.


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: Alright so here's the next chapter... Little short, sorry, but it was a good place to end it. Next chapter will start up with them at dinner, and follow from there. Hopefully, if everything goes right, it'll be a super long chapter, since I'd like to get the events of the whole episode into one chapter. That being said... I've got thirteen people with this story on their favorites list. 28 following. 36 reviews. Just some numbers for y'all to crunch.

* * *

"Well, I'll be damned," Jesse muttered quietly, as they all stared at the now-open doors, stunned into immobility, before her and Daryl started shepherding the group forward. "Everybody move! Everybody inside! Go! Go!"

The call quickly went through the group, with everybody encouraging everybody else inside. Jesse glanced over at Daryl, the two of them bringing up the rear, as they all piled through the doors, slamming them shut behind them.

"Hello?" Rick called out.

"Keep movin'," Jesse snapped, herding the gray-haired woman and her daughter away from the doors. "Get away from the damn doors! Move it!"

"Anybody here?"

All eyes turned towards their left at the sound of a shotgun ratcheting. Jesse felt her eyes narrow at the sight of the blond man, as every person holding a weapon focused that weapon on the new source of danger.

"Anybody infected?" He asked, holding the gun steady on Rick.

Jesse rolled her eyes as Rick explained how one of 'em had been; how Jim hadn't made it. Easiest answer wouldda been 'no'. Damn guy didn't need their life story.

"Look, mister, we jus' need a place ta stay for a while," Jesse finally snapped, after a few minutes of watching Rick's heavy-handed fumbling. "So either let us in, or we'll go. Ain't got time ta stand here discussin' all night."

The man frowned at her, but slowly nodded. "Alright. But you all submit to a blood test. Price of admission."

"Fair enough," Rick agreed.

"Alright, come on, then. This way."

* * *

Daryl nearly ran into Jesse as she stopped in front of the elevators.

"The hell ya doin'? Move it!" He snapped, pushing her forward.

But to his surprise, she pushed back, as if her feet were rooted to the ground.

"I uh... It's an elevator," She said thickly.

"Ya a damn genius, girly. Now c'mon!" He barked, shoving her again.

"Daryl, stop it!" Lori snapped at him, reaching out and grabbing one of Jesse's hands. "Can't you see she's scared?"

Scared?_ Hell no_. Not her. But when he moved around in front of her, he could see her face, and realized the stupid bitch was right. Drained of all color, gray eyes wide in panic, staring at the damn elevator like it was the gates of hell or some crazy shit.

"Jesse, come on," Lori said softly, pulling on her hand. "It'll be over in a minute, alright? Just a minute, and it'll be done. Nothing to be scared of."

Jesse shook her head, eyes squeezed tightly closed, shuddering.

Daryl grunted, handing his gun and bow off to Rick, and picked her up bridal style, pulling her close to his chest as he maneuvered his way onto the elevator.

"Jus' close ya eyes, a'ight?" He whispered. To his surprise, she only buried her head further into his body, a small whimper escaping her throat.

It seemed like one of the longest minute of his life, her clinging desperately to his shirt, as the elevator began its slow descent, all eyes focused on him and the girl. As soon as the thing came to a stop, Daryl roughly shoved his way forward, making sure they were the first people out.

"A'ight. All over," He said roughly, making sure she was steady on her feet before he released his grip on her arms. He let his gaze drift over her head, turning into a glare as the others stood just in front of him in the large corridor. "What? Y'all got a problem, or somethin'? Keep movin'; we'll catch up."

* * *

Jesse could barely hear Daryl's sharp words over the roaring in her ears, the nausea in her stomach forcing a lump of bile into the back of her throat, as she unsteadily dropped to the balls of her feet, pushing her head between her knees.

_Shit. Fuckin' elevators. Of course it would be elevators._

She was finally able to catch her breath, as the world came back in focus.

"... that?"

She slowly straightened herself out, forcing herself to take large, even breaths through her nose, before turning to Daryl.

"I'll be fine," She muttered, feeling her face go beat red. Of all times for her to fall apart... Of all people to have to _carry_ her, for God's sake. _Shit_.

"If ya say so." The slight smirk he threw her way as they started down the hall reassured her; while he might rib her about it, he wasn't going to think any less of her for her breakdown.

And for some crazy, insane reason she couldn't quite put her finger on... That meant something to her.


	17. Chapter 17

A/N: Alright, so firstly thanks for all the reviews. Secondly, it's nice to know that I'm not the only one who hates elevators! So thank you to everyone who let me know that I'm not alone in my hatred of the evil, demonic things. Thirdly, I know I said I was going to try and do the whole episode in one chapter, but I had this part finished, and edited, so I figured I might as well throw it up, give y'all something to read while I finish up the next part, and do my editing. As always, thanks for reading, special thanks for reviewing, and enjoy! : )

* * *

"Is this really necessary? I mean, if we were infected, we'd be running a fever."

_First smart thing the blonde bimbo's ever said,_ Jesse thought, rubbing at the band-aid in the crook of her arm as she moved back towards the group. Damn doc had had to jab her four times before finally hitting her vein.

"I'm already breaking every rule on the book just by letting you in here; let me be thorough at least."

Jesse scoffed as she dropped into a chair. "Don't look like they can be affordin' ta fire ya at this point, doc, even if ya had a boss."

"Jesse, stop," Rick ordered, moving towards a stumbling Andrea. "It's little enough to ask."

"You okay?" Jenner asked, a note of concern in his voice, as Jaqui and Rick helped Andrea to a chair.

"She hasn't eaten in days; none of us have," Jaqui said quietly.

Jesse rolled her eyes at the other woman's weakness. Two days without food, and suddenly all the other women were turning into pansies. The kids, she could almost understand being a little weak in the knees, but the adults? Hell, she hadn't even started feeling the hunger pangs yet, much less gotten slowed down by 'em.

But none the less, her ears perked up as Jenner smiled, and said, "Well, we can't have that now, can we?"

* * *

Less than an hour later, the group was assembled around what was – to them at least – a feast, consisting of MRE's, and a few bottles of wine. Her and Daryl had both snatched up the ones that read 'Beef Roast W/ Veg.', and scarfed them down before the others had even decided what they wanted, and were passing a bottle of some french-sounding wine back and forth, laughing as Dale pushed Lori to let the boy have his first sip of wine.

"Kids in Italy and France have wine with dinner every night!" He said with a laugh, reaching for the kid's glass.

"And when Carl's in France or Italy, he can have some then."

"Aw, c'mon," Jesse interrupted, with a chuckle. "Ain't like anybody's 'round ta enforce the drinkin' age no more."

"Yeah, lucky for you, and Glen," T-Dog laughed.

"C'mon, Lori... What's it gonna hurt?" Rick cajoled, giving his wife a smile.

Lori sighed, and pulled her hand away from the glass, and all eyes watched as Carl took a large swallow. Nobody could contain their laughter as his face scrunched up, and he began coughing and hacking at the sour taste.

"Ewww! That's nasty!"

"That's my boy," Lori said, and Jesse could see the relief written on her face as she dumped his glass into hers. "That's my boy."

"Why don't you just stick to soda pop there, bub?" Shane asked, and Jesse could tell he was trying to hide his mirth, not wanting to embarrass the boy further.

"Not you, Glen!" Daryl said suddenly. Jesse laughed at the deer-in-the-headlights look on the Asian's face, freezing with the can of soda still in his hand.

"What?" Glen chuckled nervously.

"_You_ keep drinkin', little man; wanna see how read your face can get," Daryl said with an evil grin as he plopped down in a free chair.

"This ya first time drinkin', Glen?" Jesse asked, a hint of a smile on her face. When Glen nodded, she laughed. "Consider ya self lucky; my first time drinkin', one a my foster brothers made me chug a glass of straight Jameson. Whiskey," She added, seeing the confused look on his face. "I was sick for two days. Couldn't even haul my ass outta bed."

"An' that's sayin' somethin', seein' as how ya don't have much of a ass ta haul," Daryl teased as she pulled a stool up between him and Shane.

"How would you know unless you were looking?" T-Dog shot back. The entire group burst out laughing as Daryl's face went red, and he started mumbling, which only brought on another round of raucous laughter.

The rest of dinner passed in a blur, and for the first time in a long time, Jesse began to relax.

* * *

Daryl was shaking the last remnants of water out of his hair, when he heard a quiet tapping on the door of the room he'd chosen.

"What?" He called out roughly, not wanting to move from the comfort of the chair.

"S'me. Can I come in?" Came Jesse's slurred voice.

"It's open."

He couldn't help but laughing as she entered. He wasn't sure who's shirt she had borrowed, but it hung down almost to her knees, a pair of plaid boxers barely showing underneath, her curly black hair a ratted, tangled mess, and looking for all the world like a half-drowned waif.

"Ha ha, yuk it up," She snapped, a smile easing her words as she plopped down on the couch across from him.

"Do I wanna know who's under britches ya stole?" He asked, still chuckling as she grabbed the half-empty bottle out of his hand, and taking a long pull, before handing it back.

"They's mine. Stole 'em from my foster brother 'fore I hit the road. The shirt's T's though; he was the only one outta the showers when I came out."

Daryl nearly choked on a mouthful of the red liquid, swiping at the trickle that escaped down his chin. "When ya _came out_? Tell me ya didn't wander 'round half nekkid 'fore ya found him."

"Had my beater on," She said defensively, snatching the bottle back. "Didn't ya mama ever teach ya never ta waste good alcohol?"

Daryl snorted, unable to stop himself as he said, "Didn't ever get much of a chance; woman was too busy guzzlin' it all down herself."

There were a few moments of silence, before she grinned. "Well, my Uncle Toby always said 'if ya ain't happy, ya ain't drank 'nough yet'. An' I skeefed two more bottles 'fore we left the cafeteria."

Daryl rolled his eyes, but accepted the proffered bottle. "Well, that's a hell of a lot a happy ta be had."

He wasn't sure how long they sat in the companionable silence, each nursing their bottle, but it must have been close to an hour or two, before he spoke again.

"Should probably be gettin' back ta ya own room, 'fore people start wonderin' what we're doin' in here," He said, feeling his face turning red again.

"Ya know, ya cute when ya blush," The girl snickered. "But uh... Was kinda wonderin'... I mean, all the other rooms got people in 'em... Andrea's sharin' with Carol an' her kid, Dale's sharin' with Glen, and T's in with Shane... Obviously Deputy Dumbo's in with his wife..."

"Uh huh..." Daryl didn't like where she was headed.

"Well, I was kinda thinkin'... maybe I could crash on the floor in here? I promise, won't even kick ya this time."

Daryl scoffed at the memory of their night in the tree stand. "Why don't ya bed down with Andrea an' them?"

" 'Cause she's a nervous wreck, an' Carol snores."

"How the hell would you know if she snores?"

Jesse was glaring at him by that point, her gray eyes narrowed. "What the hell's it matter? Ain't like I'm gonna rape ya in ya damn sleep. Look, I'll even sleep on the other side a the damn room if ya want."

Daryl grunted, not liking it, but too drunk to push the issue as he threw the pillow he'd been leaning on at her head. "Fine. Whatever. Jus' stay over there, an' if anybody asks, ya passed out in here, a'ight?"

She snorted as she unsteadily got to her feet, moving over towards the far end of the room. "Like anybody's gonna give a damn," She muttered.


	18. Chapter 18

A/N: Alright so firstly... Second longest chapter, I've ever posted on this site... Only missed being the longest by 27 words. So... Yay for me? Secondly, while I won't harp too much about reviews for the last chapter (although special shout outs to FanFicGirl10, and NormanReedus (lol)) since I posted it so late, and threw this one up so quickly, I will say... I better get a fair amount of reviews on this, or Imma be royally peeved lol. But as always, thanks for reading, special thanks for reviewing, and enjoy. : )

* * *

"Rise an' shine, girly."

Jesse groaned as she pushed herself to a sitting position, glancing over to see Daryl tying his shoes. "Shit. What time is it?" She muttered, stretching her arms above her head.

"If these clocks are right, almost nine. Hung-over?"

"No. Ya would think bein' a top government priority, they'd have softer carpet," She said, shifting her head from side to side, and letting out a contented sigh as her neck popped. "How long ya been up?"

"Not long. Jus' heard somebody stumblin' down the hallway a few minutes ago; figure maybe they'll have breakfast ready by the time we get there. I uh... I grabbed your bag from the rec room. Figure ya didn't wanna be wanderin' 'round in ya underwear. C'mon; I ain't waitin' all day. What the hell are ya doin'?!" He sputtered, turning away as Jesse stripped off the over-sized shirt, and boxers, leaving her standing in a black wife-beater, and blue boy-short underwear. "You crazy, woman?!"

Jesse rolled her eyes as she rummaged through her bag, pulling out a pair of jeans, and a gray pocket tee. "Jesus, ya tellin' me ya ain't ever seen a woman in her underwear before?"

"Ya one of those damn necros, ain't ya?"

She laughed, pulling her clothes on, and tapping him on the shoulder. "I'm decent. An' it's _nymphos_. Necros like dead people. An' no, I ain't. Jus' figured it's nothin' ya ain't seen before."

"That ain't the point," He growled as he stalked towards the door, throwing it open so hard it nearly bounced back and hit her in the ass. "Ya don't go strippin' in front a random strangers."

"You _really_ need to relax. An' maybe get out a bit more if ya think that was strippin'," She added with a cheeky grin as they neared the cafeteria.

Daryl gave her the stink-eye, mumbling under his breath, "Ya ain't right in the head. Somethin' wrong with ya."

"I ain't the damn prude," She shot back, before marching into the kitchen. "Glen! How ya feelin', little buddy?" She asked loudly, laughing at the clearly hung-over Asian boy. "Hey! Where the hell is everybody goin'?"

"Show and tell time, young lady," The doctor said over his shoulder, as everyone followed him out.

"See? Ya made us miss breakfast," Daryl grumbled, as they fell in line with the group.

"Oh, shut up," She snapped, trying to hold on to the lingering smell of eggs.

* * *

"Give me playback of TS-19."

Jesse scoffed. "Ya ever get tired a talkin' ta a damn computer, Doc?"

"Hush up, an' listen," Daryl grunted, settling himself on top of one of the desks, as the computer repeated the command, and the large screen started flashing with images.

He was lost from the first time Jenner opened his mouth, and started babbling on about the damn light show that was playing on the screen. Apparently, he wasn't the only one.

"So... how 'bout explainin' that in terms that someone who failed biology a few times would understand," Jesse snapped, chewing on her fingernails, as she hopped up on the desk next to him. He bit back a snort when he realized her feet were hovering about a foot and a half off the ground, and turned his attention back to Jenner.

"Those are synapses. Electric impulses in the brain, that carry all the messages. They determine everything a person says or does, from the moment of birth... 'til the moment of death."

Daryl would never admit it, but the pictures were beautiful. To think that something like that was going on, inside his own head. He listened halfheartedly as the doctor continued his little tutorial, until the man said, "VI, fast-forward to first event."

Instantly, the lights started fading, being over-taken by thin black tendrils; it only took a few moments before all of the bright blue lights had disappeared, and only the black remained. He ignored the exchange between the doc and Andrea – 'bout time the damn fools quit cryin', and accepted reality for what it was – still staring at the screen in fascination.

Jesse, though, apparently didn't share his amazement with the now-dead brain. "Ya can cry 'bout the dead later. What the hell makes these shit-heads get back up an' start walkin', tryin' ta eat us?"

Everybody glared, but Jenner simply shrugged, as he ordered, "VI, fast-forward to second event.

"The resurrection times vary wildly; we have reports of it happening in as little as three minutes. The longest we heard of was... eight hours. In the case of this patient it was two hours. One minute. Seven seconds."

Everyone leaned closer, as a small ball of red light slowly appeared in the center of the brain. After a few seconds, bursts of red began zig-zagging through the rest of the head at random intervals.

"So it... restarts the brain?" He heard Lori ask.

"No, just the brain stem. Basically it gets them up, and moving."

"But they're not alive?"

Daryl snorted at Rick's question. The picture on the screen looked like rotting, red worms crawling through a brain; wasn't nothin' 'alive' there. The doctor only smiled, pointing to the screen, and saying, "You tell me."

After some more banter, and watching the bullet rip through the test subject, Jenner ordered the computers to shut down. They all stood there awkwardly, before the blonde finally asked what everyone was thinking.

"You have no idea what it is, do you?"

Jenner hesitated, before answering. "It... could be microbial. Viral. Parasitic. Fungal."

"Or the wrath of God," Jaqui muttered, her voice sounding like it was breaking. Daryl glanced a look at Jesse, and seen that she was rubbing the little beaded cross thing again as she stared at the ground.

"Yes... there is that."

"Somebody must know something," Andrea said determinedly. "Somebody, somewhere!"

"There... are others, right? Other facilities?"

Jenner sighed, as he turned to look at Carol and her kid. "There... maybe some. People like me."

"But you don't know?! How can you not know?!" Rick demanded.

"Everything went down. Communications, directives... all of it. I've been in the dark for... almost a month now."

"So it's not just here. There's nothing left anywhere. Nothing. That's what you're really saying, right?"

Daryl pushed himself off the desk, shaking his head. "Man, I'm gonna get shit-faced drunk. Again," He muttered, moving off the platform. He was dimly aware of Jesse trailing along behind him, as he made his way back towards his room.

"Did ya really expect any different?" She asked quietly, as he grabbed the bottle off of the coffee table where he'd left it.

He grunted as he plopped back down in the chair. "Nah," He admitted. "But hearin' him say it... Shit." He took a long pull from the bottle, before offering it to her.

"Yeah."

* * *

"Shit, is it gettin' hotter in here?" Jesse asked after a while.

Daryl snorted. "Girly, ya halfway past piss-ass-drunk. Ya wouldn't know if ya got struck by lightnin'."

"Fuck you," She snapped, standing up on the arm of the couch, and pushing her hands towards the vent. "The air's off."

"What? Nah, ya jus' too short ta feel it," Daryl grunted, climbing up next to her, and putting his own hand on the vent, before pulling it away in surprise. _Shit_. She was right.

"See? I tol' ya!"

What the hell was going on, he wondered for a moment, as he jumped off the couch, and helped her down. "C'mon. Let's go find Dr. Frankenstein an' ask jus' what the hell is happenin'." Sticking his head out the door, he was surprised to see everyone else standing in the hall, with the doc silently walking past them.

"Hey! Why the hell did everythin' turn off?" He called.

He was shocked when the man grabbed the bottle of wine out of his hand, and started chugging, before answering.

"Energy use is being prioritized.

"Wait... _Air_ ain't a damn priority?" Jesse asked, sliding past Daryl, and falling in line behind the doctor. "An' _lights_?"

"It's not up to me. Zone Five is shutting itself down."

"Then who the hell is it up to?!" She demanded, but the doctor didn't say anything as he continued towards the main computer lab.

"Hey! Hey! What the hell does that mean?!" Daryl asked gruffly, wondering where the hell the other guys were as the rest of the group all began following Jenner back to the main computer lab. "Hey, man, I'm talkin' ta you! Whaddya mean, it's shuttin' itself down? How can a buildin' do anythin'?"

He felt a shudder go down his spine at the man's deadpan tone, and the cold look in his eye, as he faced him for the first time.

"You'd be surprised."

* * *

Sobriety was hitting Jesse hard, the nervous energy, and the crazy doctor's attitude yanking her painfully back into reality, as he started rambling something about the damn French.

"Daryl, somethin' ain't right," She whispered, leaning in close to the hunter. "We gotta get outta here. This guy's nuts."

"Hush up for a second, will ya?" He muttered back, following Rick and Shane up onto the platform. "What'd y'all find?"

"Generators. With no fuel," Shane bit out.

Damn stupid fools, she thought desperately, following them up, not knowing what else to do. Something was seriously wrong, something bad. She glanced over at the clock, which was now reading a little under thirty minutes.

"Everybody grab your things!" Rick snapped after a few more seconds of conversation. "We're gettin' outta here now!"

Thank Christ, Jesse thought in relief, moving towards the door. She couldn't help the yelp that escaped her throat as the damn things slammed shut, almost catching her toes.

"What the fuck?!" She cussed, as alarms started blaring. "What the hell is goin' on?! What the hell jus' happened?!"

"Did you just lock us in?!" Glen asked, his voice going up an octave, as he turned back towards the platform. "He just locked us in!"

Instantly, there was chaos. Jesse froze as the children began sobbing, her eyes latching onto Jenner. "What the hell are you doin'?!" She screamed. "Let us outta here!"

When he slowly shook his head, she could feel her brain shutting down, going into survival mode. _There had to be another way out_. There had to be more than one door. Air vents, maybe. She jumped the railing of the ramp, grimacing as she twisted her ankle, but not slowing, ignoring the group, and Jenner's outburst as she began moving around the room.

* * *

Daryl knew it was stupid – and a waste of good alcohol – but he couldn't help himself as he chucked the bottle at the thick doors. "Open the damn doors!"

"Get outta my way!" Shane snapped, rushing by Daryl with an ax.

"Daryl!" Daryl turned just in time to avoid getting hit in the head with the ax T-Dog threw at him, grabbing it, and joining Shane.

Jesus. The first blow shook through his arms, making his teeth chatter. What the hell was the damn door made of? He was surprised at how easily he and the other deputy fell into synchronization, although a twisted part of him chuckled at how little it would matter if they did accidentally kill each other with the damn axes. They were all gonna be dead in fifteen minutes anyways.

"Those doors are designed to withstand a rocket launcher."

The almost-chuckle in the doctor's voice was the last goddamn straw.

"Well you're head ain't!" He roared, rushing the man, ax raised. At the very least, he wasn't gonna give the stupid shit head the so-called 'easy' death he wanted. He was gonna take him apart, bit by bit until he opened those damn doors.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Somebody screamed, and in an instant, the two deputies, and T-Dog were on him, wrenching the ax from his grip. "Daryl, no!"

He only struggled for a few seconds, before spitting as he backed off. "Fine then! Let's all jus' sit here an' fuckin' roast like goddamn marshmallows!" He cussed, before realizing that he couldn't see Jesse. "Jesse! Where the hell are ya!" He spotted her over by the scaffold, crawling out from underneath it. "What the hell are ya doin'?!"

"Tryin' ta find another way out!" She screamed back, darting up the stairs, and pounding on the glass windows that looked into the office. "The vents are too narrow; even the fuckin' kids wouldn't fit!"

Seeing her renewed his hope. He grabbed the ax that T-Dog had set on top of the computers, and ran back to the door. Each swing sent vibrations straight down to his feet, but he couldn't stop. All he could hear was the women crying. The kids sobbing. Jesse screaming in frustration as she pounded on the glass.

"Move over!"

He glanced to his left, and seen Jesse holding the ax – and damned if it wasn't nearly as tall as she was – a determined look on her face, as she gave him a grim smile. He slid over, and the two of them started swinging again.

They were both so caught up in what they were doing, that he nearly fell over when the doors suddenly opened. He reached out in time to stop Jesse, who _had_ started to fall, and hauled her back to her feet.

"C'mon!" He yelled, turning back to the group. "Let's go!"

"Rick, come on!" Lori yelled, moving back down the ramp.

"Jesus, people, let's move!" He roared, grabbing Carl by the shirt sleeve, and hauling him along behind him. If the kids parents wanted to die together, so be it, but he wasn't about to leave a damn kid behind.

He heard Glen scream behind him. Four minutes. Fuck. The elevator would take about a minute.

_Shit. The elevators._

"Jesse, the elevator - "

"Don't worry 'bout me!" She snapped, shoving Carol and her girl in front of her. Apparently, they weren't moving fast enough to suit her, as she threw the ax towards him, picking the little girl – who was only a foot or so shorter than she was – up, swinging her onto her back, as they raced towards the elevator.

* * *

Jesse wasn't sure how she got into the elevator, especially with the added seventy pounds on her back. Adrenaline, maybe. Or the little girl clinging to her for dear life. Whatever it was, it didn't matter; she didn't even hesitate as she plowed her way onto the elevator, taking a quick head count.

"Where's Dale and Andrea?! Jaqui?!" She yelled, sliding Sophia off her back, and turning towards the huddled mass.

Rick didn't answer, as he punched the 'door closed' button, followed by the ground level one.

The ride to the top was easily the longest minute of her life.

As soon as the doors opened, everyone was shoving to get off. T-Dog ran to the keypad, typing in random numbers, Glen slamming on the doors in frustration.

"Get ta ya mama!" She snapped, sliding the girl off her back, before bolting towards the windows.

The ax. Who had she given the ax too?

"Get outta the way!"

Apparently Daryl, she thought ruefully, as he shoved her back, before he began swinging at the glass, Shane hot on his heels.

She moved over towards Glen, at the doors. She gave him a nod, and they both started throwing their weight – the little bit they had between them – at the doors.

"Everybody down!"

Jesse turned in time just to see Shane taking aim at the windows. She dropped to her knees, pulling Glen down with her, covering her head the best she could as the sound of the shotgun ricocheted through the room. When she glanced up, she felt the tears starting for the first time, as she seen that the window hadn't even spider-webbed.

_Shit. They were all gonna die. Staring at the sun shining outside, they were all going to fucking disintegrate._

"Rick!" All eyes turned towards Carol, as she ran forward, digging in her purse. "I have something that might help!"

"Carol, I don't think a nail-file is gonna help us none," Shane said dismissively, as he moved towards the panel that T-Dog had vacated.

The woman clearly ignored him, eyes focused on Rick. "Your first morning at camp. When I washed your uniform? I found this."

Jesse's eyes went huge as the woman pulled out a grenade. "Jesus, lady, ya been walkin' round with a fuckin' _grenade_ in ya purse this whole damn time?!"

Rick spared her a quick glance. "Don't complain," He said quickly, before moving to the window.

"Everybody down!"

"Get down!"

Jesse felt Daryl grab her arm roughly, bodily hauling her over to the stairs. She barely seen Rick kneel next to the window, before Daryl threw his body over hers.

The force of the explosion set her ears to ringing, as she felt another body fall on top of Daryl's.

"Get off!" Daryl snapped, shoving roughly, and knocking Rick off of them. "Everybody out! Move it, move it, move it!"

She almost chuckled as they all ran across the green towards the vehicles, taking pot shots at the scattered Geeks. Suddenly, the walkers didn't matter quite as much, she thought as the group plowed through them. Funny how the thought of being burnt to a crisp could put things in perspective like that.

"Get in!" Daryl barked as they got near the truck. "Move it!"

She wasn't going to argue. She jumped in the cab of the striped pick-up, and was roughly shoved face forward onto the seat, as Daryl wrapped his body around hers again.

Awaiting the inevitable explosion.

They didn't have long to wait.


	19. Chapter 19

A/N: Alright, so three things. Firstly, as always, thanks for the reviews. : ) You guys make me very happy. Secondly… If you haven't seen the thirteen minute deleted scene from Season 2, episode 1, this chapter will make absolutely no sense at all lol. So y'all should go watch it if you haven't seen it. It's on YouTube. Thirdly… I've noticed a common theme in some of the reviews, wondering about a lack of um… Well, smut? Any sort of sexual interaction? I just wanted to say that –as I stressed in the first chapter, and the summary –I'm trying to keep this story true to what Norman Reedus has repeatedly stated about Daryl. Even when it happens –and it will probably be a while –it isn't going to be titillating, long, drawn-out sex scenes. These are two very damaged people, who –similar to what we see in season 3 with Daryl and Carol –won't ever be able to have a fully functioning, healthy relationship. Now I probably will throw in a few more teasing moments between them, but that's gonna be all for at least a few more chapters. Just thought I'd throw that out there for y'all to chew on.

* * *

"Daryl? Daryl, I can't breathe."

Daryl instantly sat up. "Shit. Sorry," He muttered, helping her up. "Ya a'ight?"

"Yeah. Everybody make it ta the vehicles?"

"Not much we can do if they didn't," He said quietly, turning the truck on. "We gotta move. That explosion's gonna draw every Geek in the city."

"Wait a minute; that's Dale! And Andrea!" She said excitedly. "They got out!"

Daryl followed the direction she was pointing, and was shocked by the smile that came to his face. "Well, I'll be damned. They did make it," He grunted, watching as the two hoped into the RV. "Let's get outta here."

"Amen ta that, an' Hallelujah," Jesse replied, as he put the truck in gear, and started following the others in their procession. "Any idea where we're headed?"

"Dunno. But I only got half a tank a gas, so not far. The RV can't be doin' much better. Shit, dunno if we can even get out of Atlanta with what we got," He muttered, shifting up a gear as they picked up speed. "An' they're probably gonna push for Fort Benning."

"Oh, shit. Daryl, your arm."

"Huh?" Daryl glanced down, and was surprised to see a shard of glass in his arm. As soon as he seen it, he started to feel the pain, blood steadily dripping from the large gash just above his elbow. "Damn. Musta been from the window. Shit."

"Keep drivin'. I got it," Jesse said firmly, sliding over into the middle seat, rummaging through her bag, and the glove compartment. "Hey, you got any tapes we could listen to or somethin'?"

"Uh, I think –Shit! Ow, mother-fuckin', goddamn son of a motherless whore!" He cussed, ripping his arm away from Jesse.

She grinned, holding up a two inch wide piece of glass. "Got it. Now give me ya arm back, ya pussy; gotta get somethin' 'round it 'fore ya bleed out on me. Crash in ta a ditch or some shit."

He glared, but held his arm back out, half-watching the road, half-watching her as she tore the sleeve off one of her shirts, frowning as she wrapped it around his arm. "Uh… thanks," He mumbled.

"Well, that glass was probably meant for me, so... Although I do owe ya one. Think ya cracked one a my ribs when ya shoved me on the stairs."

Daryl scoffed. "Sorry. Next time I save ya life, I'll try an' remember that," He scoffed.

Jesse grinned, and Daryl couldn't help but thinking how cute she looked when she smiled. Like a little elf, or some shit.

"Ya know, ya only half as ugly when ya smile."

Shit. Had he really just said that? What the hell was wrong with him? Christ Almighty. What the fuck was wrong with him?

"Yeah? An' _you_ look like puked up shit," She said, rolling her eyes, and Daryl felt a wave of relief that she hadn't taken him seriously. "Think I fucked up my ankle though."

"Ya a'ight?"

"I'll be fine. Probably jus' twisted it. Think I did it when I jumped the railin'."

"Have one a the women take a look at it when we pull over. Wrap it up for ya or somethin'."

She scoffed, as she slid back over to the passenger seat, grimacing as she put her leg up on the seat between them. "Like any of 'em would get that close ta me. I might bite."

"Or kick," He said with a snort. "My shin is still bruised."

"Ya know, you're kind of a blat ass."

"An' you're a midget. What's ya point?" He retorted. Just then, a thought hit him. "Hey, ya think those senior citizen gangsters might let us stay with 'em for the night?"

"Maybe. Rick did give 'em those guns. Radio it up ta Rick; see what he thinks."

* * *

Twenty minutes later, they were pulling in to the driveway leading to the Vatos hideout.

"Let's hope they're feelin' friendly."

Jesse cut her eyes over the group, sighing, praying that Daryl was right, and the Vatos were feeling really friendly. Eleven people to feed, and shelter. Jesse knew that if the situations were reversed, she wouldn't take the group in.

"First good idea ya had, Grimes," Daryl sneered, as he took point, Jesse falling in behind him, limping slightly as they made their way through the empty garage, and jumping down into the courtyard.

"Jesus, Mary, an' Joseph," Jesse whispered, sucking in a breathe as she took in the gruesome sight that greeted them.

Walkers were scattered throughout the courtyard, feasting the corpses. Glancing to her right, she felt her gorge rising as she seen the little Mexican –Miguel, his name was. Or at least, it had been, back when he had a face, and the legs to go with it. She let loose one of her arrows, getting no satisfaction out of the kill, watching the blue-feathered shaft sink into the Geek's skull, as it fell onto the kid's half-eaten corpse.

"Oh my God," Somebody whimpered behind her.

"I don't care about the noise," Rick said quietly, his voice sounding on the edge of breaking. "Bring 'em all down."


	20. Chapter 20

A/N: Alright peeps. Here's the next chapter. And this will probably be the last one for the weekend, since I'm mildly depressed with the general lack of responses for this. I'm not quitting or anything, think I just need to take a few days break. Again, if you haven't seen the thirteen minute deleted scene, you really should go watch it on YouTube. Thanks to those who did review. Also, for anyone who's interested, I posted two new Daryl one-shots, if any y'all wanna check 'em out.

* * *

It was all over in about thirty seconds. Every walker in the courtyard had been dropped, dead to stay, hopefully.

Jesse ran over, and was yanking her arrows out of eye sockets, cheeks, and mouths, when she heard it.

"Rick! We got more!" She hollered, seeing the coming mass of Geeks just on the other side of the concrete wall.

"Everybody on me! Inside!" Rick barked. "Move it!"

Jesse hobbled along at the back of the group, feeling the lancing pain shooting up her leg from her ankle as she roughly shoved the gray-haired woman and her daughter forward. "Lady, ya daughter's gonna be Geek food if ya don't haul ass!" She snapped, daring a glance behind her, heart sinking as she seen the man Daryl had shot in the ass at the front of the herd, missing most of his jaw. Shit. What the fuck had happened? She wondered, following everyone into the actual nursing home.

Bodies littered the hall, and the little girl started sobbing.

"Put a sock in it!" Daryl hissed, turning to glare.

"You leave her alone!" Carol whispered back.

"Shut her up, or I will!"

"Knock it off!" Jesse snapped at both of 'em. "Rick, what's the plan? We stayin' or goin'?"

"The RV's on the red for fuel," He said slowly, scrubbing a hand over his face.

"Look, we hunker down here for the night; Me, Rick an' Daryl sweep the buildin'. Rest of y'all, barricade that door," Shane said quickly, grabbing Rick by the shirt, and hauling him off into the bowels of the building.

Daryl only spared her a passing nod, before following the other two men.

Jesse waited until they'd all disappeared around a corner, before turning back to the group. "A'ight. A'ight, see what y'all can find – desk, filin' cabinets, chairs, anythin' an' everythin'! Let's lock that door up tighter than a flea's asshole. An' keep it quiet!" She added, sending a glare towards the kids. "Ain't no time for fallin' 'part!"

Within a few minutes, her, Andrea, and Glen had hauled two desks, a filing cabinet, and pieces of a hospital bed in front of the door, and Dale was helping T-Dog and Lori stack the furniture in front of the door. It wouldn't be enough to hold off a whole herd – not for long anyways – but it would hopefully be enough to get them through the night. They were busy stacking any loose objects around their barricade, when Jesse heard it. Growling.

Everybody dropped to the ground, but Jesse scooted across the floor, sliding in between the two kids, wrapping her arms around both of them, and plastering a hand over each one's mouth. Let their mothers glare all they wanted; at least they'd still have eyes to glare with, she thought scornfully. Eyes to see their still-breathing children.

She was surprised when the girl – Sophia – pushed herself further into her side, burying her face in Jesse's shirt, shuddering as she reached across Jesse's lap, grasping at Carl's hand, which he eagerly grabbed.

* * *

Lori didn't miss the way that Jesse almost seemed to fold over onto the children, letting her head rest on Sophia's, black curls mixing with dirty blonde. Even Carl seemed to find strength in the young woman, leaning into Jesse's arms as he would his mother's.

Apparently, the Walkers didn't have much of an attention span, she thought gratefully, because after only a few seconds of sniffing at the doors, it shambled away. A sigh of relief went through the entire group.

"C'mon. Keep movin' further in," Jesse hissed, removing her hands from the children's mouths, and pushing them to their feet. "Ain't gonna be no more dangerous in there than it is here."

The glare she sent Lori's way, as Lori grabbed Carl's hand, and started pulling him along, let Lori know that Jesse knew she hadn't missed the kids' reactions.

And it let her know that Jesse wasn't happy that she'd seen it.

* * *

Jesse could feel her face tightening in pain, the steady throb from her ankle now feeling like someone was stabbing her in the leg over and over as she shepherded the children further inside the building. As soon as they found the others, she sat down on the table, sighing in relief as the pain lessened somewhat.

"Upstairs is our best bet," Rick was explaining, "We've barricaded a few rooms, and we can barricade those if we have too. We'll be alright," He said, taking a look around the group, and giving them what he probably thought was a reassuring look, but Jesse thought it looked like a kid asking for approval.

"You mean it this time? Or are you lying like all the times before?"

Jesse twisted her body around, to face Carol. "Ya know what, lady? Seein' as how I've saved ya damn kid twice now, don't really think ya got much room ta be talkin'. But if ya don't like how thing's bein' done, feel free ta try an' make it on ya own," She snorted. "Ya wouldn't make it an hour out there by ya self."

"What the hell happened?" Glen mumbled from across the room, sounding close to tears.

"What do you think?" Andrea asked sadly. "They got overrun."

Daryl snorted as he came over, and sat down next to Jesse. Andrea turned her glare to the two of them, rolling her eyes.

"You got something to say?" She asked haughtily.

"Yeah," Daryl snapped, folding his arms across his chest. "How 'bout 'observant'?"

"Observant, huh? Big word, comin' from a guy like you. Three whole syllables."

Jesse growled, and started to stand, when Daryl roughly shoved her back down, his glare telling her to keep her ass put, that he could handle his own battles.

"Walkers didn't do this," He said, his voice low and dangerous as he stalked closer to her. "Geeks didn't show up 'til after all this went down. Somebody attacked this place; killed all these people, an' took whatever the hell they wanted. They all shot in the head execution style. Y'all worried 'bout walkers? I'd be much more worried 'bout the people who came an' did all this."

As he strode out of the room, presumably heading towards the second level, Jesse flashed Andrea a grin, pushing herself back to her feet.

"Get a dictionary. Look it up. Observant," She said with a chuckle, before following after Daryl.

* * *

"How's ya ankle doin'?"

Jesse rolled her eyes as she plopped down onto the floor, stretching her leg out in front of her. "I'll be fine."

Daryl growled as he dropped to one knee next to her. "Gettin' real tired a hearin' ya say that," He muttered, picking her leg up, and unknotting her boots as gently as he could. He heard her hiss of pain as he pulled the boot off, followed by her sock, but forced himself to ignore it.

It was definitely sprained; already, the flesh on both sides of her foot were turning black and blue, the skin swollen to the touch.

"Damn, girly, when you do somethin', ya go all the way, don't ya?" He asked with a chuckle, sitting down, and propping her ankle up on his knee.

"Yeah, well... My mama always said, go big or go home," She grunted, leaning her head back against the wall.

"Hey, any a y'all got somethin' I can wrap this up with?" He asked over his shoulder, as the rest of the group entered the room.

Rick glanced over his shoulder, before sighing. "I'll go check and see if there's anything left in the infirmary. Shane, you wanna check the kitchen, see if there's any food left?"


	21. Chapter 21

A/N: Alright, so here's the next chapter. I'm trying to hurry things along a bit, so sorry if this is all starting to feel a bit rushed. Anyways, thanks to those of you who've reviewed, and here's hoping you enjoy this chapter.

* * *

Jesse was exhausted. To think that a little bit more than two hours ago, she'd been drinking it up with Daryl in a nice, air-conditioned room, relaxing for the first time in months.

Speaking of drinking... Real sobriety – not the adrenaline-spurred clarity from earlier – was starting to set in, or at least the hangover. Now that they were finally stopping, finally slowing down, her head was starting to pound in time with the throbbing of her ankle, and the dry mouth was starting to set in.

"All I found in the kitchen was this," Shane said grimly, stalking back into the small room.

"And the infirmary wasn't much better; they ripped the doors off the hinges. These were the only things left," Rick added, lightly tossing a bag of cough drops to his wife.

"Great, we came back for garbanzo beans, an' cough drops," Daryl snorted. "Nothin' ta wrap her ankle with?"

Rick shook his head sadly, walking over to his wife.

Jesse sighed, pulling her leg off of Daryl's knee. "I'll be fine. No worries."

* * *

It was late; how late, Daryl wasn't sure, as he took a small swallow from the wine bottle. He was maybe an hour in to his four hour watch, and in that hour, he'd managed to down a good third of the bottle.

"Ya know, my uncle Toby always said drinkin' alone was a good way ta find ya self puttin' a bullet in ya head."

Daryl chuckled as Jesse limped her way over to the staircase he was sitting on, and slowly lowered herself down next to him.

"Ya uncle must a done a hell of a lot a drinkin', ta come up with all these rules. An' ya ankle ain't gonna be 'fine' if ya keep walkin' on it. I ain't draggin' ya 'round 'gain," He said roughly, as he offered her the bottle.

They had sat in silence, passing the bottle back and forth, back and forth, in some sort of… easy peace, Daryl supposed was the only way to describe it. As much as he hated to admit it, the little midget was sort of growing on him. Or at the very least, she wasn't annoying him as much as the rest of the group did. Most times, anyways.

"Ya know… M'sorry 'bout… 'bout teasin' ya, I guess. I uh… Sorry if it makes ya uncomfortable."

The sudden noise made Daryl startle a bit, but not as much as the girl's words did.

"It don't make me uncomfortable," He muttered, knowing how stupid it was to say, given how red his face felt. "It uh… It jus' ain't right. I mean… You uh… ya a pretty good lookin' girl, an'… ya jus' gotta be careful, ya know? I mean… shit, I'm surprised ya ain't had uh… problems. With guys, ya know? I ain't sayin' ya… I mean… Aw, hell, girly," He sputtered. He'd never been good with words; even as a kid, he'd always been awkward, especially with women.

"Look, I don't need ya lookin' after my 'modesty' or some shit. I 'preciate it, but I can take care a myself."

Daryl snorted. "Yeah, an' ya 'bout the only woman here who can. Hell, half the people we got barely know which end a the knife ta hold."

"Yeah, uh… I picked up on that. Ya know… I really… I really thought 'bout leavin' 'em. But after today… Those kids… Shit, we both know if somethin' happened ta Rick or Shane, those kids would be dead in a day," She said quietly, laying her head on his shoulder.

He froze, his entire body stiffening at the feel of her soft, smooth skin against his own rough, calloused flesh, at the sight of her black hair cascading down over his shirt. Shit. Why the hell…

* * *

"Hey. Girly! C'mon."

Jesse grunted as she opened her eyes, and Daryl didn't miss her hand moving towards the knife at her side, before she seemed to snap awake, rubbing at her eyes blurrily.

"I uh… Think I might a had a bit too much ta drink," She grumbled, closing her eyes again.

"Yeah. C'mon, let's get ya back inside. Time ta wake Shane up. Get some shut eye 'fore we head out," He said gruffly, leaning down, and scooping her up in his arms.

"Hey! Put me down," She slurred, and Daryl rolled his eyes as he moved back towards the room the group had holed up in.

"Even if ya weren't drunker than a damn goat, ya shouldn't be walkin' on that leg. Now shut up."

* * *

As soon as he'd woken Shane up for his watch, he'd sat down next to Jesse, who'd already fallen back asleep.

Daryl rarely slept laying down anymore; it had become second nature for him to fall asleep sitting up, or even standing on occasion. It was just easier, these days.

He didn't know what possessed him to go back to her. To bed down next to her. That was what had his head reeling. It only sent him into more of a tailspin, when the girl mumbled something in her sleep, rolling over, and pressing her back against his leg. He was starting to regret what he'd thought earlier.

Why the hell was she so damned attached to him all of the sudden? Wasn't like he was any great looker; wasn't like he was exactly a charmer either.

Had to be 'cause they were both the outsiders, he decided, as he stared around the room. Everybody else had somebody. Even if it wasn't family, they still had somebody. A friend, a child, a spouse, a sibling… they all had somebody.

His sibling had been left on a Goddamned roof. Was probably dead by now. He didn't even wanna begin to guess at what the girl had left behind.

Point was, they were the only ones who didn't have somebody.

He'd avoided thinking about what he'd lost; about Merle being gone for good. Mostly 'cause if he did stop to think about it, he knew it'd rip him apart. For the first time in his whole Goddamn life, he was well and truly alone. Merle wouldn't be coming back this time. No reunion, no celebrating his latest release from some correctional facility. He was all by himself. Nobody cared if he lived or died.

He knew what that was doing to him. He didn't wanna think about what it was doing to a damn kid.

He guessed it made sense, in a twisted, weird way. The two loners, the two outsiders, the two people who didn't have anybody pairing together. Looking out for each other, watching their backs.

Could be worse, he supposed, glancing down at the midget, who'd curled herself into a ball against him. At least the kid knew how to take care of herself.


	22. Chapter 22

A/N: Alright, so a few things fairly quickly... Firstly, thanks to everyone who's reviewed, as always. Secondly, the next chapter will be the traffic jam, or whatever you wanna call it, and the losing of Sophia and all that. Since I don't have it written yet, I'd love to hear your thoughts about what you think Jesse will do/where she'll be while all that goes down. Again, peeps, I write by the seat of my pants; if you have thoughts, or ideas, comments, concerns, or questions, feel free to ask. I usually don't have an immediate goal in mind; hell, most times I'm lucky if I have a long-term goal in mind lol. I tend to free write most of my chapters, so if there's something you'd like to see, or thoughts you have about what might improve something, shout it out! Either hit me up with a PM, or leave it in a review. I love adding other people's ideas, because sometimes I lose sight of where I'm going, and end up in the middle of nowhere with a story lol. Also... Not that it really matters, but I recently got on Twitter; same user name and everything (letmefallasleep), so feel free to do whatever it is that you're supposed to do on Twitter... I have no idea whatsoever lol. Anyways, I'm done babbling now, thanks for reading, special thanks for reviewing, and enjoy. : )

PS: I'm looking for chapter titles for this if anyone has any ideas; I only use song lyrics for titles, so if you know of any that you think fit a particular chapter, let me know. Plus, it occasionally lets me hunt down, and search out new music when y'all suggest titles. : )

* * *

"So we're leavin' the truck behind?"

Daryl glanced up from his bag, and seen Jesse leaning against the wall, her own ratty backpack in hand, looking at him expectantly.

"Yeah. Rick wants to leave as many cars behind as we can. Save on gas, an' shit."

"So what's the break down lookin' like?"

"I guess Rick, Lori an' Carol are gonna pile in the jeep with the kids; everybody else is goin' in the RV."

"Does 'everybody' include me an' you?"

Daryl snorted as he stood up, swinging his bag onto his back, as he glared at her. "Yeah, like I'm gonna be stuck in a tin can with any a them. 'Sides, I ain't leavin' Merle's bike behind."

Jesse rolled her eyes, limping along behind him as he made his way towards the stairs. "A'ight, let me be a bit more obvious: where the hell am I ridin'?"

Daryl pulled up short at the top of the staircase. "Where ya _wanna_ ride?"

"Jesus, ya really gonna make me ask, aren't ya?" She asked exasperatedly, folding her arms across her chest, glowering at him as she leaned against the railing.

Daryl hesitated, before shaking his head. "Nah. But if ya wanted ta ride with me, all ya had do was say somethin'. Come here," He grumbled, holding his arms out, planning on carrying her down the stairs.

Her gray eyes flashed, and she took a step back. "I don't need ya ta carry me. I can walk jus' fine, thank ya very much."

He was getting _real_ tired of hearing her say she was 'fine'. Even though she'd caved earlier that morning, and let Lori wrap it as best they could with socks, she'd refused to let anyone help her around, and had insisted on helping them pack up to leave. She'd actually gone with Glen, and explored more of the building, looking for extra supplies.

But he hadn't missed the pinched look to her face when they'd came back; the way she carried herself mostly on her right leg, keeping as much weight off of the hurt ankle as possible. He'd had sprained ankles himself; knew that if she kept pushing it, she was gonna risk serious, permanent damage.

"Look, ya wanna ride with me? Fine. Then ya let me carry ya down the damn stairs. Otherwise, ya can trip, fall, break ya leg, an' go sit in the damn bus with everybody else," He growled. "Now c'mon; I ain't got all day."

She rolled her eyes again, but gave him a grin as he picked her up.

"Ya know, if ya wanted ta carry me 'gain, all ya had ta do was ask."

"Shut up."

* * *

He was surprised at how well the little midget seemed to fit on the back of his bike, her short little arms wrapped around his waist tight enough to help her balance, but not so tight to where he couldn't breathe. She'd obviously been on a bike before; she knew enough to lean with him – without over-correcting, and sending them flying into a ditch – and she kept her head down, pressed close against his back.

She didn't fidget none, either. An hour into the trip, and she hadn't moved once other than when it was required. The few girls Daryl had ever had on the back of his own bike – the one Merle had wrecked a few months before everything had went down – had always been twitchy. Moving all over the damn back end, sliding back and forth trying to get comfortable, always moving their hands, and making him jumpy. Hell, that one broad he'd picked up at the bar had actually tried tickling him.

And she hadn't tried that 'hair flying in the wind' shit either. She'd smartly tied her hair back in a weird little knot at the back of her neck, before wrapping a scarf around her lower face, grumbling something about sun burn.

* * *

The one nice thing about riding on a motorcycle, Jesse thought with a small grin, was it made conversation right next to impossible. It was kinda nice; she could almost imagine there weren't flesh-eating dead people trying to kill them as Daryl and her lead the way down the highway, the RV, and Carol's jeep with Rick at the helm following closely behind.

The wind pulling at her tied back hair was something she never expected to feel like that again. Last time she'd been on a bike was with that guy she'd met while she was on the run, before social services had gotten a hold of her again, about six months before everything'd gone to hell.

Her uncle had been the one who'd made her fall in love with motorcycles. He'd had a '87 Harley Electro Glide, and for her fourth birthday, he'd taken her riding for the first time. For the rest of the year – before social services had taken her away – Toby had taken her on road trips every weekend, no real destination in mind, just them and the open road.

Then, she'd started dating an older boy when she was in eighth grade, who'd had his father's Dyna. Looking back on it – if she was honest with herself – most of the reason she'd dated Lucas had been because of that damn motorcycle. They'd been together for about eight months, one of her longer relationships, before the accident. Then the cops put a quick halt to that particular relationship once they'd found out about the seven year age difference between their accident victims.

And then of course, there'd been Jason Isdell. The twenty-eight year old construction worker with the Polaris Victory. That had been her longest relationship ever, almost a full year. Hell, it'd lasted longer than the foster home she'd been in when she'd met him. But that had ended with the MacIntyres; as soon as Jimmy MacIntyre had found out that she was dating a man almost thirteen years her senior, he'd thrown a fit, and had Jason thrown in jail for statutory.

But riding with Daryl was different; odd, almost in a way, when she thought about it. For the first time since she'd ridden with Uncle Toby, she wasn't riding bitch.

Well, technically she was, but she wasn't Daryl's bitch. He wasn't coping a feel on the straightaways, wasn't sliding her hands down to his junk. It was... nice. Just to be free to enjoy the ride. To relax, and go with it. No pressures.

She'd almost forgotten about the damn apocalypse, right up until she spotted the car pile-up ahead of them.


	23. Chapter 23

A/N: Yay for another update... Yay for insomnia on Christmas Eve/Christmas morning? Not so much... But I figured if I was gonna be up, I might as well give y'all a little Christmas present of a new chapter. : )

* * *

"Shit," Jesse heard Daryl cuss, as the bike slowed down.

"Think we're gonna be able ta get through it?" She asked, peering around his shoulders, heart sinking. Had to be at least a mile of cars abandoned ahead of them.

"Guess we're gonna find out."

They drove a couple hundred yards through the massive pile up, before Daryl turned it around and headed back towards the group, who had stopped just on the other side of the wreckage.

"Can we make it through?" Dale called back, and Daryl nodded.

"It's gonna be tight, though," Jesse said warningly, as Daryl began turning the bike around. "Watch the corners."

They hadn't even gone a few yards, when there was a loud hissing noise behind them. Jesse instinctively ducked her head further, as she heard Daryl swear.

"Damn fool ol' man, an' his damn radiator!"

"Oh, ya gotta be kiddin' me," Jesse grumbled, as Daryl shut the bike off, both of them hoping off, and moving back towards the halted RV.

"I said it! I said it a thousand times!" Dale said dejectedly, staring at the smoke rolling out of the front grill. "Dead in the water."

"Problem, Dale?" Shane asked, and Jesse couldn't resist an eye roll at the stupidity. No, of course not. No problems. Smoke rolling out of a vehicle was _completely_ normal.

"No. Just the small problem of being stuck in the middle of nowhere, with no hope of..." Dale stopped short, as he seemed to realize where they were. "Oh. Okay, that was dumb."

"If you can't find a radiator hose here..." Shane said with a chuckle.

"Whole bunch a stuff we can find," Daryl said, his voice muffled as he rooted through the back of an SUV.

"Can siphon more fuel from these cars, for a start," T-Dog added, grinning like a fool as he went to get the gas cans out of the RV.

Jesse could feel Daryl grin at her, as she hoisted herself up, feet dangling as she rooted around through the multitude of bags in the back of the vehicle.

"Gonna make it there, Midget?"

Jesse grunted, her attention focused on the backpack in front of her, and keeping her balance.

"This is a graveyard; I'm not sure how I feel about this."

"I'll 'member that when ya damn boy is naked an' starvin' ta death," Jesse snapped, dropping out of the car with her prizes, an unopened bag of Doritos, and a bottled water that she shoved in her backpack, glaring at the woman.

"She's got a point, Lori," Rick said quietly. "It's not like these people are gonna use any of it."

"Alright, y'all, c'mon," Shane finally said, breaking the tense silence. "Take a look 'round, grab what ya can."

"I'm gonna go with him," Daryl muttered, nodding towards T-Dog, who was making his way up the line of cars.

"A'ight. Anythin' ya need me ta find?" Jesse asked, following him as far as the next car, before jumping in the driver seat.

"Nah."

Jesse shrugged, more to herself, as Daryl was already moving towards T-Dog, and she popped open the glove compartment, ignoring the corpse sitting in the passenger seat.

"Kids, don't look."

Jesse bit back the sharp retort that came to mind. These damn mothers were gonna get their kids killed, trying to '_protect_' them. Like if their mothers kept the brats from seeing it, that it would change the fact that there were walking corpses trying to eat them all.

But it wasn't none of her concern. Right then, all she really wanted to find was some clothes. She grabbed another backpack out of the back seat, having found nothing useful in the glove compartment, and hit the jackpot. The jeans looked a little long – hell, even before the dead started walking, she'd had a hard time finding clothes that actually fit – but she could always cut, or roll the legs on them to fit, and they looked like they'd fit around the waist. She stuffed the jeans in her bag, and jumped out, moving on to the next vehicle.

Thank God for hatchbacks, she thought with a grin, as she popped open the the rear hatch of the minivan. It _had_ been a little undignified, hanging off the back of a vehicle, her feet a good two foot off the ground.

"Lori! Get under the cars!"

Jesse spun around, seeing the panicked look on Rick's face as he bolted towards them, keeping his head low.

"Carl, Sophia, get down! Now!" He hissed, before rolling underneath a truck a few cars back from her.

Jesse didn't bother to ask what was happening, as she jumped into the back of the van, pulling the hatch shut behind her, and peeking her head up just enough to look out the window.

_Oh shit._

Ducking her head back down, she unwrapped her long-sleeve shirt from around her waist, covering as much of her head and abdomen as she could, as the moans, and growls of the advancing herd got closer and closer. Jesus, there had to be at least fifty of them out there.

She struggled to lower her heart-beat, which was pounding in her ears, as the noises surrounded both sides of the vehicle. Through the thin material of the shirt, she could dimly make out the Geeks shuffling past her. Shit, why the hell hadn't she gotten under the cars like everybody else? Then the thought hit her... Had everybody else gotten under cover?

Oh _fuck_. Rick hadn't moved that far ahead; hell, she'd barely heard him from where she was. Had Daryl and T-Dog seen them? Shane, and Glen? Or were they being eaten, as she laid there, huddled up under her shirt like a baby?

_She was such a fucking coward_, she thought, wanting to bang her head off the floorboards, but knowing the noise would attract the herd. Her first thought had been to hide; the others hadn't had any notice, as she protected her own ass. She should've moved further up, should've made sure everybody else was hidden. Hell, she hadn't even paused long enough to make sure the _kids_ had gotten under the vehicles like Rick had told them.

She prayed to God they kept quiet. If the girl started whimpering, and crying like she had before, she'd pull the whole group down on her head. So far, Jesse hadn't heard anything, hadn't heard the walkers make anything other than the usual moans and groans; that was probably a good sign, she decided, all the way around. If the Geeks had found anybody, she would've heard the screams by now.

And then she heard it. The girl. _Dammit_!

She threw the shirt off, and tugged at the inside latch to the hatchback; nearly pulled her arm out of socket when the damn thing didn't budge. She tugged again, her heart sinking as she realized the child locks must've been engaged. _Shit_. Another scream from the girl had her climbing over the seats, pulling at the rear doors, only to find that they wouldn't open either.

She was halfway in the front seat, when the corpse sitting in the driver side suddenly came to life, snapping its jaws, hands grabbing a hold of her hair, and pulling her head up painfully

Sophia's cries were getting louder, as Jesse wrenched her head back, feeling a chunk of her hair coming out, scrambling back into the rear compartment. Desperately, she began kicking at the safety glass of the hatch.

One kick. Two kicks. Three kicks, as she watched in desperation, Sophia disappearing down over the embankment, two walkers hot on her heels, and Rick following close behind. Four kicks. Then five. Finally it spider-webbed, and she gave it one final kick, opening a hole just big enough for her arm to snake through, ignoring the gouges from the glass as she opened the hatch from the other side.

Jesse darted past the two mothers, ignoring Carol's sobs, and mentally kicking herself for having left her bow next to Daryl's motorcycle, as she drew her buck knife.

She ignored the pain in her ankle as she jumped the guardrail, struggling to maintain her balance as she slid down the hill, and disappeared into the woods after the little girl.


	24. Chapter 24

A/N: Alright so firstly... EPIC shout outs to: Dino-SOAR, and Jables467 for the most awesome Christmas present of reviews. : ) And to Jables467: I'm glad you like the pace I'm taking it at, and and I really appreciate your words of encouragement. As always, thank you to everyone who's read, and special thanks to those of you who review. Merry Christmas, and enjoy. : )

* * *

Daryl was panting at the effort it took to drag the black man's large frame back to the RV, his arms burning as he maneuvered T-Dog around the mess of cars . "Hey!" He hissed loudly, seeing the group gathered at the guard rail. "Little help here?"

He was surprised when it was Shane and Glen who came towards him, picking T-Dog up, and moving the injured and still-bleeding man towards the RV. He ignored the questions of what had happened, as he glanced around at the assembled group, their faces telling him quicker than words ever could that something was wrong. _Shit_. Three faces missing. And didn't it just figure that two of the missing faces were the little girl and the midget.

"Where the hell are they?" He asked stonily, refusing to believe for a second that Jesse had bought the big one, cocking his crossbow, and loading an arrow.

"Sophia... she crawled out before it was clear," Dale said quietly. "Two walkers spotted her... She ran into the woods, Rick followed her, and then Jesse went after both of them."

"Shit! Fuck!" Daryl swore, banging his fists on a car. "Fuck! Ya gotta be kiddin' me!"

"Should we go after them?" Andrea asked after a few seconds.

"No!" Daryl snapped, hating himself with every word he was about to say. "We all go out there, _y'all_ gonna get lost. We'll end up shootin' each other, runnin' 'round in the dark. We gotta... We gotta wait for 'em to get back."

* * *

Jesse was moving as quickly as she could, trying to keep quiet at the same time as she limped through the underbrush of the Georgia woods. She'd already had to hide from two small groups of walkers, picking up the girl's trail after they'd moved on.

At least that was an upside: the girl was leaving a trail even a blind man in the dark could've followed, she thought with a grim smile, trying to ignore the reason why the girl had run like hell. Trying to ignore the two larger sets of footprints that ran along behind the girl's smaller prints.

She felt a wave of relief wash over her as she moved a little further. The heavy boot prints with the pointed toes could only belong to Rick. Sophia's prints disappeared, and Jesse assumed the Deputy had picked her up, as the boot prints started sinking further into the soft dirt. She followed the trail a little further, before cussing as she came to the bank of a small creek, nearly falling down the incline as some of the loose dirt broke loose underneath her feet.

Shit. She slid down the best she could, trying to keep quiet as she waded across the water, peering closely at the dirt and mud just on the other side. Rick's prints didn't reappear anywhere, and she let out another curse as she realized he must've went down the creek. Which wouldn't leave any trail for her to follow.

"Sophia! Sophia!"

"Rick!" She called back quietly. "Down here!"

Rick's head appeared above the embankment, and a smile lit up his face. "You got Sophia?"

"What?! She isn't with you?!" Jesse demanded, feeling her heart sink in her chest.

She could tell Rick was choking back a sob as he dropped down the hill, coming to a stop a few feet away from her.

"No, I... I told her to wait there," He said thickly, pointing to a small alcove of roots and branches on the other side of the creek. "Told her... if I didn't come back, to head back towards the highway."

"Ya left her alone?!"

"There were two walkers on us! I couldn't kill them, and watch her too! How far behind us were you?"

Jesse groaned, limping her way back across the water, sheathing her knife. "I dunno. I jus' got here 'bout a minute ago."

"Could she have gone around you?"

"Maybe. But I ran into two small groups; that's why it took me so long to find ya. I suppose it's possible though."

"Think you could pick up her trail?"

Jesse shook her head as she started pulling herself up the hill. "No. We need ta go back an' get Daryl. He's a better tracker than I am. 'Sides, she might already be back there. No point in runnin' half way 'cross Georgia lookin' for her if she's already back on the highway."

* * *

Daryl was perched on top of the car, glaring at the woods, to keep himself from glaring at the group huddled below him on the road.

He should've been there. Instead he was out helping the dumb-ass black man, who was stupid enough to gut himself like a damn deer.

So now the midget was out there, with a sprained ankle, and only her knife. He'd found her bow – _and he was gonna give her hell when she got back for putting it down in the first damn place_ – setting by his bike, and Rick's rifle leaning against a car.

So they had an unarmed, unskilled man, a scared little girl, and a midget with a knife out there.

Fuckin' perfect.

"Lori!"

His head turned, and he jumped down off the car as Rick and Jesse appeared from the tree line. But a bad feeling started building in his gut when he realized that the girl wasn't with him.

"Where's Sophia?"

* * *

Jesse felt like cockroach shit as she peered around the group, looking for the rainbow shirt, and realized that the girl wasn't there.

"She... She didn't make it back?" She asked thickly, trying to swallow past the lump in her throat as Carol dropped to her knees.

Daryl grabbed her roughly by the arm, pulling her towards him.

"Ya stupid, girl?!" He seethed, as he yanked her face-to-face with him. Or really, face-to-chest. "Takin' off out there, with a screwed up leg, an' nothin' but ya little pig sticker?!"

"Daryl!" Shane snapped, moving towards them. "We don't have time!"

He grunted an affirmative as he pushed her away, slinging his bow over his shoulders as he moved towards the guardrail. "Where the hell ya think ya goin'?" He demanded roughly, seeing Jesse at his side.

"Goin' with ya."

"No. Ya ain't. Last thing I need is ta be lookin' after your injured ass out there; gonna be hard 'nough tryin' ta pick up the trail without tryin' ta carry your dead weight 'round. Go wait in the RV."

He forced himself to ignore the hurt and stunned look on the girl's face, as he, Rick, Shane, and Glen moved towards the woods.


	25. Chapter 25

A/N: Alright, folks. Since I spent all last night writing, and actually came up with the next three chapters for this, I decided that I'd give you an extra special Christmas present, and post another chapter tonight, before I go tie my child to his bed lol. Hope y'all enjoy. : )

* * *

Dale didn't miss the way the girl's face fell at Daryl's words, and he slowly moved over next to her, careful to avoid any actual contact with her. He'd seen enough in his life to recognize a person who didn't want to be touched, and he respected that, even if it did look as though the poor girl's heart was breaking.

"It's not your fault," He said kindly, as she stared at the spot where the men had disappeared. "You did the best you could."

She turned towards him, and he was shocked to see tears welling up in the corners of her eyes.

"Yeah? Wasn't enough, was it? That little girl's still out there, alone in the damn woods. But hell, why don't ya go tell her mother that I '_did the best I could_''. See if it makes her feel any better," She said bitterly, before climbing up on top of the car Daryl had been on, pulling her knees up to her chest, and resting her head on them.

* * *

"Why don't ya come on down, and give us a hand?"

Jesse ignored Shane's words, as she moved her head just enough to put him in her line of sight. "Ya know... The others might a bought ya bullshit, 'bout pickin' up her trail, an' it jus' bein' a matter a time," She finally said, the words practically dragging themselves out of her chest. "But I ain't stupid. Ain't a damn sheep like them. If ya had her trail, an' there weren't no problems, you an' the Asian wouldn't a come back. Y'all would a kept on til ya found her. Or she would a been back by now."

She scuttled back a few inches, hand dropping to the hilt of her knife, as Shane stepped towards her menacingly, green eyes flashing dangerously. "You jus' keep those thoughts to yourself, ya hear me?" He hissed. "Last thing we need is you startin' a panic, or gettin' Carol all worked up. Rick an' Daryl are gonna find her. Now get down here, an' give us a hand."

"Find somebody else ta do ya bitch work," She snapped, her eyes moving to find Carol.

She barely heard Shane's muttered curses, as he stalked off, her gaze locking onto the broken woman, who hadn't left her vigil by the guard rail since Jesse had come back.

She'd failed. She'd talked a big talk to Daryl about keeping the kids safe, but in the end, she'd failed that little girl. Failed her mama. She knew Daryl was right; she was just dead weight at the end of the day. She shouldn't have convinced Rick to head back to camp. She should've just told him to go back, and tried to find Sophia's trail on her own. From what Shane had said, they'd picked up her trail just on the other side of the creek bed, heading back towards camp like Rick had told her; hell, she'd probably been standing on top of it, and completely missed it in her rush to get back to the others. If she'd just stuck with it, and looked a little bit harder, she probably would've found it; maybe even found the girl by now, and already been back to camp.

Instead, Daryl and Rick were out there fixing her fuck up.

* * *

Dusk was coming on, Jesse noticed, still perched on top of the car. Would be getting to dark to follow the girl's trail, even for Daryl.

"What happened out there?"

Jesse nearly fell off the roof in shock, spinning around, hand on her knife, before her eyes found Carol, standing next to the car, looking up at her tearfully.

"What happened?" The gray-haired woman repeated.

Jesse swallowed thickly, pulling her legs back underneath her, unable to look the other woman in the eye.

"I uh... I tried chasin' after 'em. But I kept runnin' in ta groups a Geeks, an' by the time I hit the creek bed... She was already gone," She said quietly, scrubbing at her face with one hand. "Rick showed up... An' when I realized that... that she wasn't with him, I thought... He said he'd told her the way back to the highway. Told her which direction ta go. So I figured... I figured she must a circled 'round me somehow. Made her way back. So I... I tol' him that we should head back. That she was probably waitin' for us here. An' even if she wasn't... Daryl's better at trackin' then I am; figured he'd have better luck pickin' up her trail. I uh..." She stopped, unable to continue, the woman's penetrating gaze making her feel like she was two damn feet tall.

But to her surprise, when Carol's hand reached up to her, it wasn't in anger. The woman gently set her palm on Jesse's foot, giving her a sad smile.

"Thank you. Thank you for going after her," Carol said quietly.

Jesse pulled her foot back sharply, her feelings of inadequacy turning to anger. "Didn't do no good," She snapped, turning away to look at the woods. "All I did was fuck things up worse. If... If I had been there sooner... If I'd been there 'fore she took off... Hell, if I'd been there ta help Rick... I was too damn slow. Daryl was right; I'm jus' dead weight."

"No." The woman's voice was quiet, but firm. "You went after her. You tried to find her. You did your best."

Jesse scoffed. "Guess my '_best_' jus' wasn't good 'nough then. Why don't ya go bother somebody else, an' leave me be?"

"Oh God, they're back!"

Jesse was already sliding down the windshield, moving towards the edge of the road as Daryl and Rick appeared from the brush. She stopped halfway down the hood, when she realized that Sophia wasn't with them, her stomach heaving as she seen the blood covering Daryl and Rick's pants. _Oh God._

"You didn't find her?" Carol sobbed, seeming to fold in on herself, arms wrapping around her waist as she shook.

"Her trail went cold. We'll pick it up again at first light," Rick said determinedly, but Jesse didn't miss the way his eyes wouldn't meet Carol's. Or anybody else's for that matter.

"You can't leave my daughter out there in the dark! Alone in the woods!"

"Huntin' in the dark's no good," Daryl said quietly. "Jus' be trippin' over ourselves; more people gettin' lost."

"But she's only twelve! She can't be out there on her own! You didn't find _anything_?"

Jesse moved towards Carol unsurely, tentatively reaching out a hand, and setting it on the woman's shoulder. She was surprised when Carol grabbed at it like a lifeline, clinging so tightly that her nails were digging into Jesse's palm.

"Look, I know this is hard, but I'm asking you not to panic, alright? We know she was out there."

"We tracked her for a while," Daryl added, moving closer, before taking another step back, clearly uncomfortable with the woman's grief, as lost as to what to say as Jesse had been earlier.

"We have to make this an organized effort," Rick said, his gaze finally turning to the group. "Daryl knows the woods better than anybody; I've asked him to over-see this."

But Carol was just noticing what Jesse had already seen, her eyes widening as she took in the blood on Daryl's jeans, her face going pale white.

"Is... is that blood?" She asked hoarsely, as Daryl glanced at Rick, clearly waiting for him to explain.

"We took down a walker. But there's no sign that was ever anywhere near Sophia," Rick said quickly.

"How can you know that?"

Jesse barely resisted the urge to smack the blonde bimbo upside the head, but she couldn't help the glare she gave her. Was that really necessary right then? Carol was near falling apart; extra commentary wasn't going to help anything.

"We cut the sum bitch open," Daryl said after a moment's hesitation. "Made sure."

Jesse had never been more appreciative towards Lori than in that moment, when the brunette gently pushed her aside, and helped Carol towards the guardrail, where the older woman seemingly collapsed.

Jesse started to draw back – to where, she wasn't sure, but she couldn't take another minute of being there.

* * *

Daryl sidled over the metal rail uncomfortably, as Lori and Andrea tried offering what little reassurance they could to Sophia's mama. He snorted a bit at that particular thought; wasn't much they could say that would make any mother feel better in that type of situation. He was heading towards the RV to see what sorta food he could find, when he spotted the midget's black curls over the top of the cars, already a good twenty yards away from the group. He frowned when the curls disappeared, and started moving that way.

By the time he caught up with her, he found her sitting in the driver seat of a small car, feet barely touching the pavement, as she sat with her head in her hands.

"Hey," He said quietly, kneeling in front of her. "Sorry 'bout... what I said earlier. Didn't mean it like that."

She scoffed as she looked up at him, tears filling her gray eyes. "But it was true," She said bitterly. "Wasn't no good at all out there."

"Hey, ya went after her. That's more than anybody but Rick did," He said gruffly, hesitantly setting a hand on her knee, unsure of what else to do. Or if that was even the right thing to do.

"If one more person tells me that I did my best, I swear ta God I'm gonna fuckin' slit 'em from ear ta ear."

Daryl sighed, not sure what else to say. After a few more minutes of tense, awkward, uncomfortable silence, he finally pulled his hand away.

"C'mon. We should find somewhere ta bed down for the night; got an early start ahead of us."

"Ya lettin' me go out with ya?" Jesse asked in surprise, as he stood.

"Yeah. Figure two sets a eyes are better than one. 'Sides, nobody else knows their way 'round those woods; figure if I have ya with me, maybe we can keep this group from losin' anybody else," He muttered, offering her a hand up. "Ya jus' gotta take it easy on that ankle. Don't even wanna think 'bout how bad ya screwed it up tearin' through the woods."


	26. Chapter 26

A/N: Alrighty so... I really don't like the ending for this chapter, but after three re-writes, don't know what else to do with it lol. Also, this is getting a little more into Jesse's background and everything. Fairly soon, I want to write a little bit more Daryl-background, but I just feel that being young, alone, and a girl, Jesse would be much more willing to dish on her life than Daryl would. Also for any of you who are reading either American Dream, or Never Too Late... I have hit serious blockages with writing those two. I'm trying to force myself to write new chapters for both, and it's just not working all that well. So... yeah. Anyways, thanks for reading, and I really hope you enjoy this chapter. : )

* * *

In the end, he decided the best place to sleep for the night was in the back of one of the many pick up trucks scattered across the highway. Rick had given him minimal shit about it; while their so-called leader hadn't liked the idea of him and Jesse being out in the open, it was obvious that they weren't all going to fit in the RV, or the jeep. Hell, even Shane had opted to sleep in his new little rice burner as opposed to cramming into the small bus with the others.

It almost scared him how he hadn't given any thought to whether or not Jesse would be sleeping with him; he had just grabbed her bag and bow along with his shit, and thrown it up into the truck, after laying down the thin blanket Dale had scrounged up for them somewhere. Not a word had been spoken between them as he'd climbed up in the bed of the truck, offering her a hand, and tugging her up after him, before they both moved to the front, using their packs as substitute pillows.

After the first hour of silence, he'd assumed she was asleep. So he was shocked when she finally spoke.

"We're gonna find her, right?"

He grunted as he turned his head to look at her. She was staring up at the stars, her head tilted slightly, gray eyes eerily reflecting the moonlight. "Course we are. Hell, she couldn't a gone that far. Probably find her, an' be back 'fore noon."

She was quiet again for a few minutes, before she timidly asked, "You know any a the constellations?"

"Huh? Oh yeah. Few of 'em, anyways. Merle taught me a couple, so I'd be able to find my way 'round in the dark," He said uncomfortably, moving his head back to stare at the stars with her.

"My mama wanted to be an astronomer. That's what she was goin' ta school for when she met my daddy. They both had ta drop out when she got pregnant with me. But she kept her big ol' telescope that her mama had given her, an' every night, she'd be out there, lookin' up at those damn stars. Hell, some a my first words were probably the names a stars," She said with a sad chuckle. "See that group right there? That's Lupus; the wolf. That one over there is The Herdsman. That was Uncle Toby's favorite. Kinda funny... Can't remember what my last name was, but I 'member all those damn stars."

Daryl looked over at her in surprise. "Whaddya mean, ya can't remember ya last name?" He asked gruffly. How the hell could somebody not know their last name? It'd been pounded into his head from some of his earliest memories: he was a Dixon boy. Merle had taught him to be proud of that last name growing up, although looking back at it, Daryl wasn't exactly sure what there was attached to the name that would make one proud.

"I was three months shy a bein' five when social services yanked me out. First foster family they put me with adopted me. Gave me their last name an' everythin'. Only lasted 'till they got to actually know me. Then they gave me back."

Daryl grunted as he rolled over on to his side. "Can they do that? Jus'... give a kid back?"

Jesse snorted, as she reached down, and dug through her pockets, coming out with a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. After lighting one, she handed the pack over to him.

"Yeah. Jus' like givin' up one a ya own kids ya don't want. All ya have ta do is 'terminate your parental rights'," She said, mocking a thick Yankee accent. "Jus' kiddin'; we don't want ya after all. That actually happened ta me three times. Everybody thought I was real cute; like some sort a fuckin' doll they wanted ta play dress up with. Earliest name I 'member was the Harrises. State pulled me outta there after four months. After that, every couple a foster homes, I'd run in ta one that wanted ta adopt me. I've been Jesse Britton, Jesse Martin, Jesse Ingersoll... An' those are jus' the ones that I 'member."

"Jesus, kid, how many damn homes ya go through?" Daryl muttered, lighting his own smoke.

" Hell, I stopped countin' after twenty. Got ta the point where they jus' started bouncin' me from group home ta group home. 'Bout maybe once or twice a year, I'd end up with a family somewhere, for a few months. Then I'd get in some sorta trouble, an' they'd ship me back ta the group facility. Longest I ever stayed in one place was the MacIntyres. They kept me for almost a year. Really liked it there," She said quietly, flicking her ashes over the side of the truck. "Jimmy – my foster dad – he was the one I told ya 'bout; the forest ranger slash prepper."

"Why'd ya leave there?"

"Him an' Lisa got in a car crash; killed her, an' snapped his spine like a fuckin' twig. There were five a us kids they'd taken in; we all got thrown back in the system."

Daryl was quiet for a moment, trying to absorb what the midget had said. Damn. Twenty some odd homes. Twenty families that weren't really family. While his parents hadn't exactly been All-American Dad, and Susie B. Homemaker ma, at least he'd always had Merle.

"What about ya sister?" He finally asked. "Ya said ya mama used ta take the two a ya ta church. She go through those homes with ya?"

"Nah. She took after Uncle Toby. Lindsey was my half-sister," She explained, seeing the confused look on Daryl's face. "Uncle Toby was my daddy's brother. After he died, Uncle Toby took me an' mama in; raised me like I was his own an' all that. But Lindsey was... everythin' a family could want, ya know? She ended up stayin' with that first family that adopted us. Plus she was 'bout three years younger than I was; everybody always knew, the babies never get sent back. People always fall in love with the little brats," She said with a rueful smile. "Didn't see her 'gain after I got kicked out. Probably dead now."

"So... was ya grandaddy ya mama's dad, or ya daddy's?"

"Daddy's. Why?"

Daryl grinned at her. " 'Cause Daddy Ed's was run by Eddie O'Neil."

His grin just about threatened to split his face, as Jesse shot bolt upright, her face filled with wonder.

"For real?" At his nod, she started grinning too. "Jessica Marie O'Neil. Jesse O'Neil." After a moment, she glanced over at him, the grin turning into a smirk. "I'd give ya a hug, but I wouldn't wanna make ya awkward or nothin'."

Daryl grunted as he turned back onto his back, rolling his eyes. "Ya had ta go an' ruin the moment, didn't ya?"


	27. Chapter 27

A/N: Alright so firstly, thanks for all the lovely reviews. : ) As always, they make my day. Also... Have to say, I really let my Andrea-Rage flow free in this chapter. I've hated her since the first season, and I decided in the wee hours of the morning that I was going to have Andrea and Jesse got at it like cats and... well, cats lol. This is only the start of that antagonistic relationship, so be forewarned.

* * *

"Up an' at 'em, midget."

Jesse groaned as she rolled over, her back and shoulders protesting the night spent on the hard truck bed, as she opened one eye.

Daryl was already out of the truck, standing by the tailgate, looking wide awake.

"Jesus, do ya ever sleep?" She muttered, pulling herself into a sitting position, and rubbing the back of her neck.

"Sometimes. Now c'mon; we gotta get the city folks up; don't wanna waste the daylight."

"What daylight?" Jesse mumbled under her breath, as she began tying her boots. But Daryl was already moving towards the RV.

* * *

"Everybody takes one."

Jesse glanced down at the small arsenal of blades, and scoffed. Half the people there would cut their damn hand off before they did any serious damage to a Geek, she thought with a grim smile, her right hand unconsciously running over the blue feathers of her arrows in the quiver on her side.

"These aren't the types of weapons we need," The blond bimbo said disdainfully, not moving to take a knife. "What about the guns?"

"We been over that," Shane said from where he stood, leaning against the RV. "Daryl, Rick, an' I are carryin'. Can't have people poppin' off rounds every time a tree rustles."

"It's not the trees I'm worried about."

Shane sighed, and Jesse could tell he'd had this conversation with the woman before. "Say somebody fires off a round at the wrong moment; herd happens to be passin' by. So then it's game over for all of us. So you need to get over it."

Jesse grinned as she sidled around the woman, moving towards Daryl. "Least ways with a knife, ya can only kill ya self," She said with a chuckle, twisting her neck around until she heard a satisfying pop.

"I notice you've got your bow," Andrea said angrily, taking a step towards her. "You're not going out with only a knife."

"Yeah? Tell ya what then, honey: ya go find ya self a bow, learn how ta hit the broad side of a barn, an' then _you_ can carry one."

"Jesse, maybe it would be better if you left it behind," Rick said quietly, lowering his head to speak to her. "It's not really fair that - "

"Well, life's a bitch, ain't it, Deputy Dumbo? An' seein' as how – other than Daryl – I'm the only other person who won't get lost out there, ya ain't really in a spot ta make demands."

"The idea is ta take the creek bed up," Daryl said loudly, clearing his throat to get everyone's attention. "Take it up 'bout five miles, turn 'round, an' come back the other side. Chances are, she'll be by the creek. It's her only landmark."

Jesse sent Andrea one final glare, before following Daryl. He stopped at the guardrail, his blue eyes scanning the tree line warily.

"Ya want me bringin' up the rear?" She asked quietly, stopping next to him.

"No. Let Shane take the back; if a Geek grabs him, it ain't no big loss. You keep an eye on Carol; damn woman's liable ta wander off in ta God knows what," He said with a grunt, finally turning to look at her. " 'Sides, can't look for the girl's trail, an' make sure these idiots don't get lost."

Jesse nodded, turning to face the group, to see what the hold up was, when her eyes locked onto Andrea, who was clearly arguing something with Dale.

"Oh, ya gotta be fuckin' kiddin' me," She muttered, stomping her way over to the pair, just in time to catch the tail end of Andrea's words.

"I'm not going out there without my gun. I'll even say please."

Jesse cut in-between them, feeling the rage building in her chest.

"You listen here, Blondie," She seethed. "Ya get ya ass out in those woods, or so help me God, I'll _bury_ ya in 'em, ya understand me?"

Andrea glared down at her. "Don't you dare threaten me, you little tramp. Just because you're sleeping with Daryl –"

Jesse wasn't even aware of her fist moving, until she heard the bones in the other woman's nose breaking, as blood began gushing out of the blonde's nose, spattering onto Jesse's shirt. She stared at the blood, almost absently, before she noticed the silence that had over-taken the group. Glancing around, she realized that – while nobody was exactly running to Andrea's aid – nobody was looking at her either.

"We ain't got time for this shit," She finally muttered, hooking her bow over her shoulder, and unsnapping her buck knife from it's sheath, ignoring the pain from her aching knuckles. "Burnin' daylight here."

* * *

For the most part, the group moved in relative silence, other than the occasional sentence or two from the boy.

Jesse didn't really blame him none for that. The woods were eerily silent; almost creepy, even to her, and she'd spent most of her life outdoors. The usual cacophony of sounds – birds, insects, the chitter-chatter of the smaller critters – was completely absent. Not even the trees were giving off their creaks and groans, the Georgia heat stifling the wind that would provide such a noise.

Hell, even the group's trek through the woods seemed to go by almost unnoticed, the sound of careless feet snapping branches, or rustling leaves seemingly muted.

But that part might have just been her; she was so damn focused on keeping the small group together, keeping people from wandering, and still trying to keep tabs on Daryl at the head of the pack, and Shane at the rear, that her head was starting to pound in her ears.

She was so over-focused in fact, that she nearly tripped over Glen's kneeling form, the tent a few yards away only making itself visible to her straining eyes after a few second's confusion,

"Could be in there," Shane said, his voice breaking through the silence.

"Could be a whole bunch a things in there," Daryl retorted, moving closer. He locked eyes with Jesse just for a moment, before letting his gaze encompass the group. Jesse nodded in understanding, giving Carl a light shove towards the center of the women and Glen, placing herself at the rear, as Daryl, Rick, and Shane moved closer to the small yellow and white tent.

After a few seconds of peering inside, Jesse saw Daryl's unsure shrug, and knew he couldn't get a good glimpse of whatever might be inside. She briefly wondered why he didn't just open the damn thing, before realizing his reasons.

If Sophia was inside, the poor thing was probably scared shitless. No telling what sort of make-shift weapon she'd found for herself, or what her reaction would be to Daryl storming the tent.

So she gave Carol a light shove forward, about the same time that Rick motioned for the gray-haired woman.


	28. Chapter 28

A/N: Alright, so I know this is a bit rough, and all over the place, but I felt I'd already skipped enough by skipping the church scene; I'm trying to get them all to the farm as quickly as possible lol, because I actually have a few brilliant ideas of what I'd like to do. So this is basically a mish-mash of all the scenes from the group in the woods. Next chapter will pick up where Daryl goes out at night to get away from Carol's crying. Which leads me to a question... How much do you guys want me to follow along with the show? I could have Jesse go with Andrea and Daryl, or just Daryl and Jesse, or I could have Jesse stay back with Carol. Give me some input! : )

* * *

"So this is it? This is the whole plan?"

Jesse could hear the frustration in Carol's voice, watching silently as the older woman sat down on a fallen tree.

They'd split up almost an hour ago; Rick, Shane, and Carl had elected to stay at the church, on the off chance that Sophia heard the bells. Since then, the remaining members of the group had moved through the trees wordlessly, with Daryl at the forefront, and Jesse bringing up the rear.

Apparently, Daryl felt it was alright to stop for a few minutes; Jesse mimicked his stance, as they both leaned against the trees they were closest too.

"Guess the plan is ta whittle us down in ta smaller and smaller groups," He said with a snort, taking a swig from his canteen.

"Carrying knives, and pointy sticks," Andrea added bitterly, before turning her eyes to Lori. "I see you have a gun."

"Why, you want it?" Lori asked sharply, her eyes dark, as she rooted through her bag, and pulled out the gun, holding it out to the blonde. "Here. Take it. I'm tired of the looks you're giving me."

Jesse couldn't help her grin, as Andrea slowly accepted the gun, the look on her face priceless; a beautiful mixture of shame, anger, and embarrassment. But her smile was short-lived, as Lori cast her gaze towards the rest of the group.

"Sick of all of your looks," The brunette said loudly, before locking eyes with Carol. "Honey, I can't imagine what you're going through, and I would do anything to stop it, but you have got to stop blaming Rick. It is in your face every time you look at him. When Sophia ran, he didn't hesitate, did he? Not for one second!" That last line included a glare cast in Jesse's direction. "I don't know that anybody could've made the hard decisions he made, or that anybody could've done it any differently."

"Fucking excuse me?" Jesse ground out, pushing herself away from the tree, and towards the woman, her hand resting on her knife. "Ya wanna say that one more time? You, who hid under that damn car the whole time? Ya gonna give me shit 'cause I stuck in the damn car?!"

"That's not what I meant - "

"That's exactly what ya fuckin' meant! I damn near sliced my arm off reachin' through that damn windshield! Nearly broke my damn ankle! Ya wanna go 'head, play big queen fuckin' bitch, go right ahead, but don't ya dare try an' make it out like ya husband was the only one did right by that little girl!"

"You need to calm down; that wasn't what I meant at all," Lori said firmly, unscrewing the cap from her water bottle. "And this isn't helping at all."

Jesse could feel the rage building inside her as she knocked the bottle out of the woman's hands.

"_You_ started this. 'Cause that's exactly what ya fuckin' meant; ya jus' didn't think anybody here would call ya on it. But I don't care who the fuck ya sleepin' with; suggest ya remember that."

"None a this is helpin'." Daryl's quiet, but firm voice made Jesse turn towards him. "We need ta keep movin'."

* * *

Jesse rolled her eyes, whistling quietly to get Daryl's attention as Lori stopped again, staring back at the direction they'd just came from.

"Ain't never gonna make it back ta camp, ya keep stoppin' us like this," She said gruffly, a bit more than half tempted to leave the damn woman behind next time she stopped.

"It was a gun shot."

"Yeah, we all heard it," Daryl said exasperatedly, turning around.

"Why one? Why just one gun shot?"

"Maybe they took down a walker."

"Please don't patronize me," The brunette snapped, turning a sharp eye to Daryl, her face tight. "You know Rick wouldn't risk a gun shot to take down one walker. Or Shane. They'd do it quietly."

"Think ya give 'em a bit too much credit in the brains department," Jesse muttered under her breath. But the glare Daryl sent her way let her know that he'd heard her, and he wasn't in the mood to break up yet another fight between the two woman.

"_A timer," Daryl said dejectedly. "It's on a damn timer."_

"_We can see that, thank you," Andrea said sharply, as Carol turned on her heel, heading back towards the church._

"_Ya better watch that lip, girly," Jesse snapped, getting in the bimbo's face. "Otherwise I'll make it match ya damn nose."_

"_You know what? You want a fight, all you have to do is say so!"_

"_This ain't the time or the place," Lori snapped, getting in between the two woman, who were now standing toe to toe. Jesse spared the brunette a quick glare, before lightly shoving her aside._

"_Won't be much of a fight," She said quietly, a small, grim smile coming to her lips. "An' this time, I won't stop 'till ya ain't movin'."_

"_I'm gonna kick both y'all's asses if ya don't knock it off!" Daryl's voice left no room for argument; his hands shoving them both away from each other only enforced it. "Like we ain't got 'nough shit goin' sideways; ain't got time for this!"_

Carol's quiet voice broke the awkward silence, pulling Jesse from her reverie. "Shouldn't they have caught up by now?"

"There's nothin' we can do 'bout it anyways," Daryl said, his voice deceptively casual. "Can't run 'round these woods chasin' echoes."

"So what do we do?" Lori asked bitterly.

"Same as we been: beat the bush for Sophia, an' work our way back ta the highway."

"I'm sure they'll hook up with us back at the RV."

It was Jesse's turn to glare, her eyes shooting daggers through the blond bimbo. "At the rate we goin' at, they's gonna beat us there," She grunted, moving forward again. She stopped as she heard Andrea say something to Carol – probably more useless bull shit, instead of moving her skinny ass to keep looking – and then Carol's soft words caught her ears.

"The thought of her... out here... All by herself... It's the not knowing that's killing me," The gray-haired woman said quietly, her voice breaking. " I just keep hoping and praying that she doesn't end up like Amy."

Jesse set her hand on the woman's shoulder, giving her a tight smile. "That ain't gonna happen. Ya hear me? That _ain't_ gonna _happen_."

Andrea met her eyes, and for a brief moment, Jesse knew they'd reached a brief – and probably fleeting – peace, as the blonde smiled at Carol.

"We're all hoping and praying with you. For what it's worth."

"I'll tell ya what it's worth," Daryl sharp voice cut in, as he stepped towards the three. "Not a damn thing. It's a waste a time, all this hopin' an' prayin'. 'Cause we're gonna locate that little girl, and she's gonna be jus' fine. Jesus, am I the only one zen around here? Good Lord!"

All four woman bit their lips, struggling to hold in the giggles and laughter as Daryl stalked off back towards the front of the group.

"Did anybody else jus' imagine him in a white robe, sandals, an' a shaved head?" Jesse murmured, careful to keep her voice low enough that Daryl couldn't hear.

But he definitely heard Carol's laughter, which was quickly followed by Andrea's and Lori's, the three women nearly curling over on themselves, clutching at their ribs at that particular mental image.

When Daryl cast a dark, questioning glare at Jesse, she shrugged innocently as she stepped away from the other women, shouldering her way past Glen to the front of the group.

"Hell if I know," She said loudly, "Damn women are nuts."

The laughter got louder.


	29. Chapter 29

A/N: Alright, so firstly… I just wanted to give you a wee bit of insight into my future intentions as far as Daryl/Jesse/Carol goes. When I started writing this, the idea I had in mind (being a huge Carol fan after all) was that the three of them would end up as a little quasi, fucked up family. Carol –being the nurturing woman that she is –would end up as a sort of mother figure to the two younger people; that between the loss of Sophia, and those nurturing instincts, Carol would take the two on as surrogate children. So no fear about 'Caryl' getting in the way lol. I wouldn't have wasted all this time to make poor Jesse survive the ZA alone at the end lol.

* * *

Carol hadn't stopped crying for hours. Ever since they'd gotten back to camp, she'd laid in there on the damn bed, sobbing her heart out.

Jesse twisted around in the front passenger seat, trying to get comfy, trying to ignore the heart-breaking sobs. Idly, she wondered how much anybody would mind if she turned on the radio, before dismissing the idea. Figured Andrea would give her hell over it at the very least. And Daryl, who was laying on the floor between the kitchenette, and the bedroom, probably wouldn't appreciate the added noise. As it was, she could hear him tossing and turning as much as she was, occasionally tapping his foot against the wall in time with the steady clicking of Andrea loading and unloading all the clips.

_Click, thump, sob. Click, thump, sob. Click, thump, sob_.

She was gonna go insane; at the very least, she wasn't gonna get any sleep.

_Click, thump, sob. Click, thump, sob. Click, thump, sob_.

Just as she was about to get up and leave -_to go anywhere, just to get away from the damn noise_- she heard Daryl grunt. Turning her head a bit, she seen him pull himself to his feet, grabbing his crossbow out of the seat, and slinging it over his back.

"Gonna need my clip back," He muttered, staring at the table. Jesse pushed herself to her feet, stretching her arms above her head.

"Gonna walk the road. Look for the girl."

"I'm goin' with ya," Jesse said quickly, picking her bow and quiver up off the floor, clipping the quiver onto her belt loop as she followed him outside.

"Where you two off to?" Dale called out quietly, from on top of the RV.

"Gonna shine some light on the woods; if she's out there, she might see it," Daryl called back.

"You sure that's a good idea?"

"Don't ya worry ol' man; we ain't gonna pull the herd down. We goin' in ta the woods," Jesse retorted, softening her words with a smile.

* * *

"Dale ain't too bad."

Daryl glanced over at the midget. They'd been walking for a few minutes before the girl spoke, her voice low. He shrugged, feeling the tenseness in his shoulders from laying on the hard floor for the past few hours.

"Guess not. Nosy as hell though," He grunted.

"Ya really think we're gonna find her?"

"Jesus, not you too. What the hell is wrong with y'all? This ain't the mountains a Tibet; it's freaking Georgia! Probably… holed up in a farm house somewhere, waitin' for us ta find her," He snapped. "Hell, I was younger than she was, an' I got lost. Spent nine days in the woods… eatin' berries, an wipin' my ass with poison oak."

The midget grinned at him. "Really? Thought ya knew ya way 'round the woods," She said with a chuckle. "Ya family find ya?"

Daryl snorted, the idea of his father traipsing through the woods, fat ass sweating, beer can in one hand, and cigarette in the other almost amusing. "Hell, if my ol' man had come after me, I wouldda run the other direction. Ma'd been dead 'bout a year; Merle was in juvie again, an' dad was off on a bender with some waitress. I made my way back though; first thing I did was march in ta the kitchen, an' made myself a sandwich. None the worse for wear… though my ass itched somethin' awful."

The girl's laughter surprised him. He was pretty sure the deep, throaty laughter was the first time he'd heard a real laugh from her. Not a drunk laugh, or a chuckle, or even a bitter laugh, but a real, honest to goodness laugh.

He was surprised at just how much he liked the sound.

"Ya should laugh more often; ya got a nice laugh."

As soon as the words left his mouth, he felt his face turn red; felt the butterflies start in his stomach, especially when the midget gave him a shy smile.

"Thank you. That's uh… First compliment I've gotten in a while," The girl said, her own face blushing a bit, her cheeks turning pink.

Daryl chuckled, trying to mask his embarrassment. "So strippin' ta ya underwear, nothin'. Offerin' ta sleep with me, nothin'. Give ya a compliment, an' ya go pink. Interestin'."

"I ain't pink."

"Ya pinker than a damn rose there, shorty," He said with a grin, glad for once to have one up on her. Usually, it was _her_ making _him_ blush.

"Keep it up, redneck –"

Jesse stopped short, both of them dropping low simultaneously, the growling sound hitting both their ears at the same time. Daryl quickly pinpointed the noise from a few yards ahead and to the left of them. Moving silently, they both advanced forward, when they came into the clearing.

"Well looky there," Jesse said, grinning as they caught sight of the hanging walker, standing up straight, and strolling up to the tree that the Geek was hanging from. The midget stared at the note attached to the tree, before turning to him, her face red again.

"I uh… What's that say?"

Daryl gave her a funny look. "What, letterin' ain't big enough for ya?" He asked curiously.

The midget shrugged uncomfortably, folding her arms across her chest as she shifted from foot to foot. "I uh… I'm dyslexic," She finally muttered. "Can't read."

"Merle was dyslexic," Daryl said casually, trying to make up for his screw-up, feeling bad at the look on her face. He moved by her, and peered at the note. " 'Got bit. Fever hit. World went to shit. Might as well quit.' Stupid shit didn't know 'nough ta shoot himself in the damn head. Turned himself into a giant piñata," He said with a chuckle.

"Ya know… I don't understand this… this whole 'opting out' thing. Don't make any sense. I mean… I guess I understand it, but I don't get it," Jesse said slowly. "It's suicide. Plain an' simple. Throw whatever name ya want on it, but ya takin' ya own life. Ya ever think 'bout it?" She asked, turning to look at him.

"What? Offin' myself?" He hesitated for a second, before slowly nodding. Girl had told him some of her secrets, only fair he returned it. "Couple times. When I was a kid. Real young. Usually when Merle was in juvie. Tried it once. Merle made sure I didn't do that 'gain. Kicked my ass so bad, for a while I thought he might a saved me the trouble."

"How old were ya?" Jesse asked quietly, returning her gaze back to the Geek.

" 'Fore my ma died; musta been… eight, maybe nine?"

"An' ya never thought 'bout it after Merle beat ya?"

"Nah. An' not 'cause he whooped on me; it was what he said." At Jesse's questioning look, he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "He uh… he tol' me that… nobody in life was worth my life. That by killin' myself, I was lettin' the world fuck me over. Tol' me not ta be a bitch. An' I might a been pissed; little down or whatever, but uh… I ain't _never_ been nobody's bitch. Guess it uh... made me angry 'nough ta get over whatever shit I was feelin' then. Ain't never thought 'bout it sense."


	30. Chapter 30

A/N: Yay for another chapter! Again, mostly filler stuff, but semi-important filler. Thanks to everyone who's read, and reviewed, with a special shout-out to our newest reviewer, LibbyTaylor. And I had a random thought last night that I wanted to share with y'all... Ever think about the actors from the Walking Dead reading our fanfiction? How weird and awkward that would be? I dunno, was just watching some old Supernatural episodes, and they have one where Sam and Dean find out about the world of fanfiction, and it just got me to thinking lol.

* * *

"What 'bout you?" Daryl asked after a few minutes of awkward silence, both of them staring at the struggling Geek.

"What 'bout me? Did I ever think 'bout killin' myself? Nah," Jesse said with a small, sad smile. "Catholic, 'member? Mortal sin an' all that. One way ticket straight ta hell. But uh... There was a few times when I prayed that God would jus' lemme die. I suppose the good Father O'Hallaran would say there weren't no difference there: doin' it myself, or askin' God ta do it for me... But uh... I dunno, guess I figure God knows what I been through, an' if he can't understand a few moments of weakness, he ain't really somebody I wanna put my faith in anyways, ya know? But it's kinda funny," She said, chuckling as she started going through the small tent, looking for supplies. "Think the damn end a the world was one a the best things ta ever happen ta me. Well, maybe not funny so much as sad, but it's true. Think is is the kinda world I was meant for, ya know?"

Daryl grunted his ascent as he began picking through the small cooler, and backpack outside of the tent; he'd had the same thought more than a few times over the past three months. World really hadn't changed too much for him when it all boiled down to it. People hurt you if you let them get close. So best thing to do was to avoid people at all costs, and keep to the wilderness as much as possible. Forage for what you could, and never assume you were safe. Never let your guard down.

Sounded like most of his childhood.

"Hell yeah, take a look at this!" Jesse said happily, pulling him out of his thoughts. He turned back towards the tent, smiling as she held up a box of 'Big Texas' cinnamon rolls. "Shit, I used ta live on these damn things back when I was in high school. These an' Mountain Dew. Breakfast, lunch, an' dinner a _champions_ right there."

Daryl rolled his eyes, turning back to the backpack. "Yeah. S'great. Think these are gonna do us a bit more good though," He said with a satisfied grunt, holding up a pair of walkie-talkies, and two packs of double 'A' batteries.

"Depends on ya point a view," The curly haired girl said with a grin and a shrug. "I bet more people gonna be excited 'bout these here than those. C'mon; let's get outta here for this loser's friends come ta see what all the commotion's 'bout. Unless ya think we should shut him up."

Daryl snorted, shoving the walkie-talkies in his back pockets, and the batteries in his front. "Why? Damn fool made his bed; let him lie in it. Well. C'mon," He said roughly, when he noticed that she was still staring up at the damn walker.

"Hey, I need ya ta promise me somethin'," She finally said slowly.

"Yeah? What's that?"

"If... If I ever get bit... Don't wait for me ta turn; hell, don't wait for me ta _die_. Ya put me down 'fore that happens. I don't wanna be one a those things, an' I sure as hell don't wanna wait 'round ta die a slow, painful death."

Daryl shrugged as they started walking again. "If that's what ya want."

"I mean it. Ya don't let any a those fuckin' morons at camp stop ya; soon as ya know I'm bit – an' I'll make sure ya know, trust me – ya put a bolt or bullet 'tween my eyes. No matter what anybody else says. Ya promise?"

"Sure, kid."

"So why ya keep ya brother's stash layin' 'round? I been wantin' ta ask ya," The midget said quietly after a few minutes of silence as they retraced their steps back to the highway.

"Why not? Never know what ya gonna need these days."

"Ya ever use 'em?"

* * *

Daryl stopped up short next to her, and Jesse felt as if she'd run into a tree branch when he stuck his well-muscled arm out in front of her, stopping her dead in her tracks, a small 'oomph' escaping her.

"I ain't _never_ used drugs. Never. That was Merle's thing. Not mine," He growled, his blue eyes intense as he glared at her.

Jesse shifted uncomfortably under the weight of his gaze. "A'ight; wasn't tryin' ta piss ya off or nothin'. Jus' curious is all. Didn't mean nothin' by it."

Daryl held her eyes for a few seconds more, before nodding, and lowering his arm, and the two started walking again.

"You ever use 'em?"

Jesse shrugged. "Not since I was fifteen. 'Fore that... hell, anythin' I could get my hands on went up my nose, or in my veins. But Jimmy an' Lisa got me cleaned up, an' everythin'. Ain't used since."

* * *

"I think uh... I'm gonna stay out here for a while," Jesse said thickly, seeing the disappointed look on Carol's face, as the older woman made her way back into the RV. "Keep Dale some company."

Daryl shrugged, but didn't say anything as he followed Carol and Andrea up into the bus.

"So... gonna keep me company, then?" Dale asked quietly, giving her a small smile as they moved around to the back, and climbed the ladder up to the top.

"Can't deal with them in there. Figure if I'm gonna be awake all night, might as well do some good," She grunted, sitting down on the edge, and digging in her pockets for her cigarettes and lighter.

"You know those are bad for you, right?" Dale asked with a chuckle, and Jesse was surprised when he pulled out a pack of Marlboros, and indicated for her to toss him the lighter.

"Yeah, well... Figure I'll be lucky if I make it long 'nough ta die from cancer."


	31. Chapter 31

A/N: Alright so still more filler stuff, but hey... I was bored, and only had my grandmother's laptop, so I didn't have access to the next episode, so I figured I'd write this and throw it out there. Eh. Anyways, thanks to everyone who's read, and everyone who's reviewed. : )

* * *

Jesse rolled her shoulders around, wishing she had a Mountain Dew. Dawn was just starting to peek it's head over the trees, and she could feel her eyelids start to droop as she realized she'd been awake almost twenty-four hours.

She'd gone longer without sleep before; hell, back in high school, she'd once went almost seven days without sleep on a dare. But those had been the days of easy access to soda, sugar and caffeine pills. Was a bit harder to do without stimulants.

"You been up here all night?"

Jesse turned, startled at how easily she'd missed the older woman who now stood at the edge of the RV roof. Shit, she was seriously slipping if she'd missed Carol's exiting the RV, and her ascent up the ladder.

"Yeah," She grunted, flicking her cigarette over the edge. "Everybody else still sleepin'?"

Carol nodded, as she sat down next to her. "Yeah. Andrea and Dale are in the bunks; Daryl fell asleep at the table a couple hours ago."

Jesse frowned as she sipped at a bottle of water, wishing the woman would just go away. "Really? Kinda figured he'd been sleepin' this whole time."

The gray-haired woman smiled at her. "I think he was worried about you up here by yourself. Wasn't real happy when Dale came down. But Dale thought you just needed some time to yourself. Time to think."

"Yeah. Guess I did."

* * *

Carol sighed, licking her lips as Jesse hung her head, clearly avoiding looking at her. The guilt was written all over the young girl's face, so obvious it was almost painful to see. Especially when it was so undeserved.

"It's not your fault, you know," Carol said quietly, laying a hand on Jesse's shoulder. "You did everything you could."

"Yeah, that's what y'all keep sayin'," The girl said with a snort. "Don't change the fact that what I _did_ wasn't 'nough. I wasn't fast 'nough, wasn't… Hell, _I_ jus' wasn't 'nough, all the way 'round. Ya little girl's missin', an' it's my fault."

"But it's not. That's what I'm trying to tell you. I _don_'t blame you."

"Why? Why the hell not? Ya obviously blame Rick, so why the fuck don't ya blame me?" Jesse demanded, finally looking her in the eye. "Why not me? I was out there too."

Carol took a moment to consider. The girl had a point, as much as Carol hadn't thought about it. She _did_ blame Rick. Blamed him with every part of her being, even though she knew that it wasn't entirely fair. But she didn't blame Jesse at all.

Mostly, she knew it was because Jesse wasn't much older than Sophia; Jesse shouldn't have been out there on her own any more than Sophia had, whether or not she could handle herself. Maybe it was because she _did_ see so much of Sophia in the girl.

Not her spirit, obviously. No, Jesse was much stronger than Sophia was. But she could tell that the girl had gone through much of the same abuse that Sophia had gone through. Had gone through hell from the hands of someone who was supposed to take care of her, someone who was supposed to love her. Something like that always left its mark.

She didn't know if any of the others had picked up on it. Maybe Daryl had; she wouldn't say for sure, although he most likely had picked up on the fact that the girl had a serious past. But she didn't think anybody else had. They wouldn't know the signs like Carol did. Supposed that was a good thing, at the end of the day.

But Carol knew. And she couldn't find it in her heart to lay any blame at the feet of the small girl sitting beside her. And even if Jesse was to blame in any way, Carol didn't think she'd blame her then either. Girl was carrying around enough blame for everybody.

Even though she hadn't done anything to deserve it.

"You went after her. Even though there were Walkers everywhere, and you only had a knife for protection… you still went out there after her. Did you stop to rest? Did you see any signs that you ignored?"

"What? No!" Jesse said indignantly, glaring. " 'Course not!"

"So what exactly are you blaming yourself for? You went after her; you tried to find her. I didn't… didn't expect anyone to go after her. You, least of all. But you did. And if I'm not mistaken, you cut yourself up pretty badly doing it," Carol said with a smile, flipping the girl's arm over, and looking at the long, jagged cuts on the underside of the pale arm.

Jesse yanked away roughly, folding both arms across her chest. "Ain't nothin'; hell, had worse rough-housin' with my foster brothers."

"I can still take a look at them if you'd like; wouldn't want them getting infected. Hate for you to need some of Merle's clap medicine."

She smiled as the girl chuckled.

"Poor T. Saved by Merle's clap. Not sure I'd wanna live if I owed it ta that," Jesse said, ducking her head down, as she fumbled around for something in her pockets.

Carol frowned as the girl came out with a pack of cigarettes. "You know, you're much too young to be smoking. Too pretty, too."

"Yeah, well… Ain't like age really means too much these days. 'Sides… It's the end a the damn world, in case ya missed it. Ain't like I got much competition in the beauty department these days."

Carol knew she shouldn't say it. Knew she should just keep her mouth shut. But she couldn't resist adding, "And it looks to me like you may have already found yourself a good man."

"What?!"

Carol chuckled at the look on the girl's face. "C'mon. We should get the others moving."


	32. Chapter 32

A/N: Alright so firstly, thanks to everyone for the deluge of reviews. Eight on the last chapter! You guys rock. That being said, special shout outs to all of our new reviewers and readers, with an extra special shout out to ry123red, for being the hundredth reviewer. Y'all rock! Thanks for reading, and enjoy. : )

* * *

Damn Carol to hell, Jesse thought darkly, as Daryl drove the bike up the driveway towards the white farmhouse in the distance. Now that the older woman had said something, Jesse couldn't help but notice Daryl's firm stomach underneath her hands. The earthy smell, mixed with leather and pine, that wormed its way through her nose with her head pressed against Daryl's back. How well she fit against him, her legs tucking perfectly behind his, her arms just long enough to hold him comfortably.

So it was a relief when he finally stopped the bike, and she was clamoring off the back almost before he'd shut it off, nearly tripping in her haste, knowing her face was probably red as a damn tomato.

"First day on the new feet?" Daryl grunted, giving her a small grin as he knocked the kickstand out, and stepped off.

"Shut up. Hey, how's the kid doin'?" Jesse called out, ignoring Daryl as she moved towards Rick and Lori standing on the porch.

"He's gonna be fine," Lori said with a tearful smile, and Jesse was shocked when the brunette woman pulled her into a tight embrace. "He's gonna make it."

"Yeah, thanks to Shane," Rick said, giving his best friend a grateful look. "He got the supplies we needed."

"Good. That's gre –"

"Monk?"

Jesse turned sharply, still responding to the old nickname as easily as she did her own, her eyes searching out the voice, before settling on the tall blonde boy standing next to a younger girl.

"Do I know you?" She asked suspiciously, eyes narrowing as she stared the boy up and down.

"Uh… yeah, we uh… We went to school together our freshmen year. We had homeroom biology together, with Ms. Clark. Jimmy? Jimmy Allen."

Jesse frowned for a minute, wracking her brain for a moment. Her freshman year as 'Monk' – which had actually been her second time around as a freshman – wasn't exactly the most easily remembered year; it had been her first few months at the McIntyres, before she'd gotten off all the drugs and booze she'd been hooked on. But the boy's lopsided, embarrassed grin tugged at her memories, telling her that that she _should_ remember the kid. Finally recognition dawned on her, and her frown turned into a grin. "Oh! Oh yeah, I remember. Wow, small world, huh, Jimbo?"

Jesse's grin got bigger at the blush that came over the kid's face. How could she have ever forgotten that damn blush?

"Uh… yeah. Yeah, it's good to see you again."

"If y'all are done gettin' reacquainted… We got us a 'lil girl ta find," Daryl said sharply, stepping into Jesse's line of sight, and blocking her view of Jimmy, sending a glare in the kid's direction. "Y'all got a map or somethin'?" This last bit was aimed towards the older man standing on the porch, who nodded slowly.

"I do. Give me a minute, and I'll get it."

* * *

Daryl wasn't sure why he got so angry when Jesse smiled at the little dweeb standing on the porch, but he couldn't help himself from stepping in between the two, and reminding the midget about their job. Wasn't time for her to be looking up old boyfriends, especially not with Sophia missing.

But his sharp reminder seemed to have done the trick.

"I'll get a pack ready ta take with us," She said, giving him a small nod, before moving towards the RV, stopping to grab Dale's arm, and whispering something into his ear that Daryl couldn't quite catch.

* * *

Jesse groaned as she swung the backpack up and onto her shoulders. While it wasn't that heavy – maybe ten to fifteen pounds at most – the motion was enough to send a dull, steady ache through her upper back. She needed a good night's sleep, and not in the bed of a damn truck neither, she thought with a grim smile, realizing how unlikely it was that she'd be getting a 'good' anything until they found the little girl.

Which hopefully would be a lot easier, she prayed, coming up behind Daryl, and glancing under his arm to take a look at the map, just in time to hear the old man – who reminded her of her grandaddy – speak.

"Not you; not today. You gave three units of blood; wouldn't be hiking five minutes in this heat before passing out. And your ankle," He added, looking over at Shane. "Push it now, you'll be laid up a month. No good to anybody."

"Guess it's jus' me an' the midget then," Daryl said gruffly, peering closer at the map. "We'll head back towards the creek; make our way from there."

"An' I can still be useful," Shane said, and Jesse was surprised to hear a note of desperation in the man's voice. "Drive up the interstate; see if she wandered back."

Rick sighed, still looking at the map. "Alright. Tomorrow then. We'll start doing this right."

Jesse couldn't help the snort that escaped. "Gee, real optimistic, ain't ya? Maybe Daryl an' me find her today."

Rick held his hands up in surrender. "Hopefully you do. But we need to start planning this thing out; plan for every eventuality."

"Part of planning for eventualities means we can't have our people out there with just knives," Shane input quietly. "Gotta give 'em the gun training we been promising."

Jesse rolled her eyes, having already heard this argument before, backing away from the truck as she moved over towards where the women and Glen were setting up the tents. Maybe she could get some of Glen's candy bars from him if she asked nicely.

Or came up with an inventive enough threat.

* * *

"So where we gonna start?"

Daryl glanced over, slowing his pace until Jesse caught up with him. "Seen a few houses in shoutin' distance a the creek; figured we'd check those out, see if we find her holed up in one of 'em."

"Hey!"

Both heads turned, a little surprised to see Rick standing on the back porch of the house.

"You two gonna be okay on your own out there?"

Daryl glared. "The two a us gonna be a hell of a lot better on our own than the rest a y'all in a group. Don't worry; I'll have the midget back 'fore dark."

Jesse ducked her head to hide her grin as they started walking again, but Rick's sharp voice pulled them up short once more.

"Hey! Look, we got a base. We can get this search properly organized now," The deputy said, glancing out towards the fields.

"Ya got a point, or we jus' chattin'?" Daryl demanded, taking a step towards Rick, clearly pissed about the delay.

"Yeah, I do. It lets you two off the hook. Don't owe us anything, either of you."

Jesse opened her mouth, ready to give the deputy all kinds of hell. Just what the hell was that even supposed to mean, 'didn't owe 'em anything'?

But a firm look from Daryl made her snap her mouth shut, still glaring at Rick, before the hunter turned towards the other man.

"Yeah, well, our dance plans fell through, Chief."

* * *

Daryl waited until they were back in the woods, before turning to the midget, her face dark, and he could practically hear her grinding her teeth. "Somethin' on ya mind?" He asked gruffly, not slowing his pace.

"Yeah. I'd like ta punch Deputy Dumbo right in the teeth!" Jesse snapped, her voice quivering in anger. "What the hell was that supposed ta mean? That I didn't 'owe 'em anythin'? Like I'm jus' gonna leave a kid a behind, 'cause he made a stupid decision?"

Daryl grunted. "It means he thinks we're trash, shorty. Same as the rest of 'em, 'sides for Carol, Dale, and the China man. Stupid redneck hicks who don't give a damn. Might as well get used to it; even if we go back carryin' that little girl tonight, it ain't gonna change his mind 'bout it. Gotta 'member... He used ta arrest people like us," He finished with a grin.

"An' it don't piss ya off?" She seethed, stepping over a fallen tree.

"Course it does. He don't know me. He don't know you. But bein' pissed ain't gonna change what he thinks. 'Sides, we ain't doin' this for him, so his opinions don't matter none."


	33. Chapter 33

A/N: Alright so... This chapter - and the house mentioned therein - take place during Cherokee Rose; the house is the one where Daryl finds the cubby -which will be mentioned next chapter. Thanks for all the awesome reviews. Y'all make me feel special. : )

* * *

Jesse rolled her shoulders, the straps of the backpack beginning to dig in. Combined with her ankle, and the harsh pace Daryl was setting, and she was already sweating.

"Need a break, shorty?"

"No," She said through gritted teeth, determined to not let him see how much she really _wanted_ a break. But she knew she was a far cry from _needing_ one just yet, and until she needed one, she'd be damned if she slowed him down.

"Ya pack water?"

She snorted, not dignifying his question with a response, as she slowed enough to pull the bag off her back, rummaging through it, pulling out a bottled water, and tossing it to him. When he stopped, she frowned. "What, can't walk and chew gum at the same time?"

"I can. But I ain't gonna carry ya back when ya trip an' fall 'cause ya half asleep, an' ya ankle gives out. Take five."

Jesse grunted, but wasn't about to pass up the offer he was making. She knew she had enough pride to fill a tanker truck, but she wasn't stupid. And it'd be easier on her ego to accept his offer, and take a few minutes' breather, than if she did fall, or trip or something.

"Wanna candy bar? I talked Glen in ta givin' us a few," She said with a grin, sitting down on a fallen log.

"Talked, or threatened?" Daryl asked with a snort, sitting down next to her.

"Bit a both," She chuckled. "Figured we didn't get no breakfast; we're entitled."

"Yeah, figure ya right. Hey uh... That kid... back at the farm... He one a ya ol' boyfriends or somethin'?"

"Why, jealous?" Instantly, Jesse regretted her words. The air between them practically buzzed with awkwardness for a few moments, as Daryl glared at her.

"No," He said after a few moments. "Jus' think it's strange, an' all. Findin' ol' friends in the end a the damn world."

Jesse sighed, her fingers playing nervously with the wrapper of the candy bar she had yet to open. "No, he wasn't a boyfriend. He was jus'... He was a sweet kid. I was the new girl. The 'bad girl'," She said with a halfhearted chuckle. "He had a crush on me, an' I uh... I used ta get him goin', ya know? See how red I could make him."

"He called ya 'Monk'. Why?"

"Oh, Jesus," She said with a laugh. "On my first day... I walked in, dressed in a pair a skin tight jeans, black leather halter top, black bandanna an' 'bout ten pounds a make-up. High as a kite on cocaine. One a the boys let out a cat call, said somethin' 'bout the biker bitch so I flipped him the bird. Well the teacher – this ol' ass lady, had ta be in her sixties – started yakin' 'way, talkin' 'bout detention an' everythin', an' for some God-forsaken reason, I put my hands together in front a me, an' gave her this little bow, tellin' her how sorry I was. From then on, everybody called me 'Monk'."

* * *

"Doesn't suit ya," Daryl grunted, pushing himself back to his feet, and offering the midget a hand up. He didn't tell her that it was next to impossible for him to picture her dressed like. Just seemed wrong. The baggy cargo pants, white beater, with the blue and black checkered over shirt – sans sleeves – was the only way he could see her. She looked...

Well, she looked damn good.

"Yeah, well, at least it's more original than 'Shorty'," Jesse said with a grin as they started walking. "C'mon, ya never had any stupid nicknames growin' up?"

"Jus' Merle callin' me Darylena," He said shortly as they came into a clearing, an old, dilapidated house a few hundred yards away. He stared at it for a few minutes, before cutting his eyes over to her. "Whaddya think?"

She shrugged as she pulled an arrow from her quiver, and readied her bow. "Not too far from the creek. Looks safe 'nough. Yeah, I'd say she might be in there. Uh... question," She said quietly, as Daryl pulled back the string of his crossbow, cocking it, and loading an arrow. "What uh... What're we gonna do if... If she been bit?"

"She ain't been bit," Daryl said gruffly, as he stalked towards the house, refusing to say any more about it. She'd only been missing three days; there was no way she'd been bit yet, he thought as he tried the doors. Locked.

"I ain't got my lock-pickin' kit on me," the midget said with a shrug when he glanced over at her.

Daryl stared at her stupidly for a moment. "I wanted ya ta look 'round, see if ya could find a spare. Ya have a lock-pickin' kit?" He asked with a grunt, bending down to look under the mat for a spare key.

" 'Course I do. I ain't seein' nothin'."

Daryl sighed, praying there were no geeks around, before planting his foot firmly against the door, an inch or so to the side of the lock, giving Jesse a grim smile as the doors swung open. They both glanced around silently, as they stepped into the stillness of the house.

"I'll check upstairs," She said, her voice barely above a whisper.

He nodded as he moved towards the kitchen. "Be careful; no tellin' what ya find in a house this old."

"Yeah, yeah, ma. I'll be careful," She said, grinning at him, before she headed towards the stairs. And for a moment – just for a damn second – Daryl caught himself watching her disappear up the landing. Found himself wondering when the hell the midget had wormed her way into his brain.

He hadn't ever been one for friends; a few guys from work that he'd occasionally crack a beer with at the bar, sure. But nobody close. Nobody he'd ever had a real conversation with, other than Merle. And most conversations with Merle didn't exactly fall into Daryl's 'enjoyable' category.

As he slowly made his way through what had once been a living room, bow held high, waiting for intruders, another part of his mind was pondering just how easily Jesse had slid into his life. Funny how he hadn't even known her a week and a half ago. She'd just been the newest refugee in the fledgling Atlanta survivors' camp. Now, it was second nature though; where he went, she went. He found himself searching her out, monitoring her movements whenever she wasn't by his side. No thought behind it. Just like he hadn't thought to ask the midget if she'd wanted to go out searching with him that day. Just like he hadn't thought about where she was going to sleep that night on the highway. Just like he hadn't thought about where she would ride when they left most of the vehicles behind.

It was because they were outsiders, he reminded himself firmly. Just like he'd told her earlier, the two of them were the odd ducks out. The ones everyone looked at suspiciously. The ones everyone thought the worst of.

It made sense. It was the only thing that made sense, really, about them falling in together. Only their roles in the group – the opinions of the others – was what was forcing them together.

Wasn't any other damn explanation.

* * *

Jesse meant to be careful; despite her sarcasm to Daryl, she'd noticed that the house wasn't exactly in prime condition. The damn thing had probably been empty close on to ten years, she thought as she glanced around at the furniture and pictures.

But when she stepped into the furthest bedroom, at the end of the hall, she couldn't stop her small squeal of delight. A battery operated Walkman lay on the bed, amidst a scattered mountain of tapes, and she bolted for it, the prospect of music – hell, any music at that point – making her forget her caution.

At least, forget right up until she heard the floor creak underneath her.

* * *

Daryl was in the kitchen when he heard a loud crack, followed by the midget's yelp.

"Jesse!" He barked, running towards the stairs, heart pounding in his chest. "Shorty, where the hell are ya?!"

"Back bedroom!" Came the response. "Careful; one a the floor boards gave out."

_Shit_, Daryl thought grimly as he slowed his run to a cautious walk, testing each board of the hallway carefully, well aware that if it had fallen beneath the girl – _who was at least sixty or seventy pounds lighter_ – chances weren't good about it holding up under his own weight.

"Not... Tryin' ta rush ya or anythin'," He heard the girl grunt out, her voice pained, "But I'm bleedin'... like a stuck pig here."

"Goin' as quick as I can," He called back shortly, nearly to the door. When he finally peered around the corner, his heart sank, and he began cussing up a storm.

One of the midget's legs' was stretched out to the side, the other disappearing into the floor, almost up to her hip, a good six feet away from the door. _Fuck_.

"A'ight, shorty... Can ya lean back at all?" He asked when he finally stopped swearing.

"Don't know... if that's a good idea. Don't wanna... go all the way down."

"Yeah, well I got news for ya, sweetheart; if it didn't hold your weight, it sure as hell ain't gonna hold the both a us."


	34. Chapter 34

A/N: Yay for another chapter! Sorry it took me so long to get up, been kinda busy this weekend. But it's here now. Thanks to everyone who's added me to their respective lists, and special thanks to those of you who have reviewed. Y'all rock. : )

* * *

"A'ight, Daryl, think," Daryl muttered to himself, cautiously stepping one foot out, testing the strength of the boards. House that old probably had joists every sixteen inches; the midget was probably straddling one if she hadn't gone all the way through the floor. So if he was careful...

"Didn't I tell ya ta be careful?" He grunted, still testing each step as he slowly – _Christ, so slow, he couldn't fall through or they were both fucked_ – moved closer to Jesse, eyes peeled for the signs of water-rotted floorboards.

"Jus' get me outta here!" The midget snapped, her voice a mixture of fear and pain.

"Relax!" Daryl barked back, coming to a stop just behind her, praying he'd guessed the joist length right. Looking down at her leg, seeing the blood, and seeing the broken board, he felt his heart sink.

* * *

"A'ight... C'mon," Jesse said impatiently, uncomfortable with him standing behind her, just out of eyesight unless she tilted her head back.

"You ever had a pair a Chinese handcuffs?"

Daryl's question pissed her off, and she turned her head, ignoring the awkwardness of the motion, to glare at him. "The hell does that have ta do with anythin'?" She demanded, still feeling the blood leaking from her leg. She hadn't even looked down, hadn't wanted to know how bad the injury was.

"Merle came home with a pair when I was 'bout ten. See, the thing 'bout Chinese handcuffs is... if ya jus' pull on 'em? Won't ever free ya self. Jus' get more stuck."

Jesse was two seconds away from snapping at him, when – thank God – she felt him kneel behind her, one of his well-muscled arms sliding around her body, and pulling her up. But her relief quickly turned to anger when he stopped, having only lifted her a few inches.

"What the fuck, Daryl?! Pull me out!"

He continued to ignore her, and she felt his other hand brush against her ass, before going lower.

"Hey! What the fuck are ya doin'?!" She yelped, unable to keep the panic out of her voice.

"Ta get outta 'em, ya gotta push 'em back together. This is kinda like the reverse a that. Sorry."

Sorry what, her brain screamed, feeling a full blown anxiety attack coming on, when she felt the board rip down the back of her leg again, and she had to grit her teeth to keep herself from really screaming.

* * *

Daryl felt bad; shitty, really. As soon as he'd seen the boards, he'd known there was only one way to get her out without seriously fucking up her leg, and that was to just fuck her leg up a little bit.

He wasn't a carpenter by any means, but he'd done enough repair around the shitty house he'd grown up in to know that if he just tried yanking her out, the two broken pieces of board would come up with her; would dig further into her leg, pinching it between the two pieces of wood.

So one of the pieces had to be broken down. Sounded simple. Only problem was, from what he could see, both pieces were already gouged into her leg. Meaning that it had to dig in further to get it out.

He'd tried distracting her; he knew he'd failed miserably with his stupid Chinese handcuff example, but he'd tried.

He'd felt her panic when his hand accidentally touched her ass, had heard it in her voice. But he forced himself to ignore it, feeling around blindly for the board, before smashing it with his hand as hard as he could, while simultaneously pulling her up with his arm. Heard her grunt of pain, as they both fell backwards, her landing on his chest, shoving all the air out of his lungs. He had the brief thought that they were lucky they hadn't both gone through the floor.

As soon as he'd regained his breath, he gently pushed her up, and around, so that she was sitting bridal style in his lap, looking at the damage to her leg.

It was bad. It looked like it gouged in at least an inch on the front, from her knee to the top of her thigh. Feeling the underside of her leg through her jeans, he could tell it was just as bad or worse in the back.

"Ya got a rag or somethin' in the backpack?" He asked gruffly, noticing that she was still breathing hard, her eyes squeezed shut in pain.

"Yeah. Got an extra shirt in there," She said through gritted teeth, not opening her eyes to look at him.

"A'ight. Let's get ya back down stairs, an' I'll wrap it up, an' get you back ta the farm." Even as he spoke, he pushed himself to his feet, keeping her cradled close to his chest.

"Ya find anythin'?"

"Found a cubby with some blankets. Can a sardines that was still kinda fresh. She was here. After I get ya back, I'll come back here an' see if I can pick up a trail."

It worried him how easily she seemed to accept that. Worried him almost as much as realizing her blood was already soaking through his jeans, and coating his hand. Almost as much as her fluttering eyes did.

"Jesus, girl, ya a magnet for disaster, ain't ya?" He asked, forcing a chuckle to his voice. He knew he had to keep her talking, keep her from passing out.

"Shut up," She muttered, opening one eye to glare at him.

"S'true though. Three days, an' ya jus' keep bustin' that leg up worse. First ya ankle, now this. Ya want me ta jus' save ya some time, an' chop it right off?" He asked, setting her on the floor of the living room after pulling the pack off her back. "Jesus, ya put half the damn camp in here," He mumbled, digging through it till he finally found the gray pocket tee shirt she'd buried at the bottom. Cutting a few strips off the bottom, he wrapped the rest around her leg, tying it off tightly with the strips, forcing himself to ignore her grunts of pain.


	35. Chapter 35

A/N: Alright folks, so firstly... I apologize this chapter is very rough, kind of blocky and awkward. But I'm tired, I've had a long day, a splitting headache, and a raging ear infection to boot, so... Yeah, it was either this, or nothing. Figured y'all would at least appreciate the attempt, right? lol. But that being said, I'm not sure when the next chapter will be... I'll try and work on it tomorrow if I'm feeling any better, but don't get your hopes up. Anyways, as always, thank you for reading, special thanks for reviewing, and enjoy. : )

* * *

"How old were ya when ya first started usin'?"

The question drifted across a fog of pain, and Jesse forced her eyes open to look up at him. They were moving through the woods, him carrying her, retracing their steps back to the farmhouse.

"The hell's it matter?" She slurred, her tongue feeling like a brick in her mouth, burrowing her head further against his chest. In a dim, distance way, she knew she must've lost quite a bit of blood if she was actually allowing herself to be carried. Knew she should probably be worried if she was actually allowing herself to take comfort from Daryl.

" 'Cause I don't like how pale ya lookin'. So start talkin'."

Jesse scoffed weakly, wanting nothing more than to just close her eyes, and sleep, curled up as she was against Daryl's muscular chest, his arms wrapped around her protectively, that perfect smell of him – _wait a minute_.

She shook her head, trying to clear it. Wow, she must've been worse off than she thought.

"I uh... First time was... jus' some pot. Was 'bout... seven, maybe?"

Daryl knew he probably could've picked an easier topic for conversation, but at the moment, he really couldn't think of anything else to ask.

"Seven, huh? Didn't know they was sellin' Mary Jane at the candy store," He grunted, not entirely comfortable with the way she was burrowing her head against his chest.

"Funny," She mumbled, her voice barely audible or understandable. "One of my foster brothers... Tol' me... makes it easier. Numb, ya know?"

"Gee, sounds like a real responsible older brother," Daryl snorted, feeling his arms start to burn with the exertion of carrying her.

"He was... tryin' ta help. Take some a the... the pain."

"Ya were seven; still a baby. The hell kinda pain ya have? Somebody push ya on the playground?" He asked, unable to keep the sarcastic tone out of his voice.

"Fuck you," Came the weary reply. "Ya don't know... shit."

"Whatever. When ya get in ta the heavier shit?"

"Why?" There was a flash of anger in the midget's voice, even though it sounded like she was struggling just to stay awake. "Wanna... put me down... some more?"

"Look, I'm jus' tryin' ta keep ya awake; ya got somethin' you'd rather talk 'bout, go for it. But I ain't havin' ya pass out on me," He snapped. "So keep talkin'."

There was a few seconds of silence, and he started to worry she'd passed out again, when she finally turned her head, and opened her eyes, a small smile on her face.

"Ya know... for an asshole... ya kinda... kinda cute."

Daryl rolled his eyes. "Now I _know_ ya in shock, shorty."

* * *

"What the hell happened?"

Daryl was panting heavily as he gratefully passed the midget off to T-Dog. "Fell through a floorboard. Cut her leg up pretty bad. Think she's in shock. Passed out 'bout fifteen minutes ago."

"Take her in to Hershel," Rick ordered the black man, who hurriedly complied. But when Daryl moved to follow them, having regained his breath, Rick grabbed his shoulder, pulling him back.

"Did you find Sophia?"

Daryl made no attempt to hide his scorn, glaring as he said, "Oh yeah. Found her, decided ta leave her out there an' jus' not tell anybody. Ya best remove that hand, or I'll do it for ya."

Rick pulled his hand away sharply. "Sorry."

"No ya ain't," Daryl snorted, before turning and stalking back towards the house. He was so wound up, that when he felt another hand tugging at his sleeve, he spun around, fist drawn back, fully ready to knock the offending party the fuck out.

And then he seen Carol.

"Uh... Sorry," He mumbled, embarrassment coursing through him as he quickly lowered his fist. "Thought ya was Rick."

Carol gave him a sad, understanding smile. "I was just wondering if Jesse was going to be okay."

"She'll be fine. She's a tough kid. Hard part's gonna be keepin' her in bed 'til her leg heals," He said with a grunt, already envisioning the argument that would come when the midget regained consciousness.

"I... Well, that is to say... I mean..." Carol took a deep breath, and stopped, chewing on her bottom lip.

"Spit it out, woman, I ain't got all day. Gotta check on Shorty, an' get back out there," He said gruffly, folding his arms over his chest.

"I just wanted to say thank you. For everything you two are doing. I..." She chuckled a little bit, letting her head fall. "Well, to say I 'appreciate' it is the understatement of the year."

Daryl hesitated, unsure of what to say, when he heard raised voices in the house. Not giving the older woman a second glance, he bolted up the porch, throwing the door open, and up the stairs, following the noise.

"What the hell is goin' on?" He barked as he entered one of the upstairs bedrooms, seeing T-Dog and Hershel holding the girl down on the bed. The midget was kicking and cussing, her eyes nearly rolled up in the back of her head.

"I've got to get her pants off to sew up those cuts!" Hershel ground out, struggling to keep hold of Jesse's flailing legs.

Daryl inwardly groaned as he moved towards the bed, kneeling by the side, and grabbing one of her hands.

"Hey! Shorty! Relax; the doc's jus' gotta sew ya up. Ain't gonna hurt ya none," He said quietly.

"Get the fuck off a me! Don't ya fuckin' touch me!"

"Young man, I've got to stop this bleeding," The doc said firmly. "As it is, she's lost too much blood."

"Ya don't have anything to knock her out?" T-Dog asked, grunting in pain as Jesse's small hand collided with his jaw.

Daryl looked at Hershel hopefully, feeling his heart sink when the doctor shook his head. He took a deep breath, hesitated for a moment...

And then let his closed fist connect with her temple.


	36. Chapter 36

A/N: Yay for next chapter! And yay for sequel to 'Never Too Late' if any of you are following that. : ) Also, be on the look out, I'm seriously considering starting a Merle/OFC fic. Oh, another little aside... You ALL should go and check out Endoh Misaki's 'Promise'. One of the ABSOLUTE BEST fics I've ever read. As always, thanks for reading, special thanks for reviewing, sorry about the wait, and enjoy! : )

* * *

Daryl couldn't stop his teeth from grinding as he made his way back towards the old farmhouse, the trail of blood the midget had left behind as easy to follow as a bear's.

He knew she'd lost a lot of blood, but he hadn't realized she'd lost _that_ much; hadn't realized that she'd actually left small droplets, and rivulets along the pine-needle-covered forest floor.

His legs and arms were still protesting having carried the girl all the way back to the farm, his chest still heaving from the exertion, and sweat still dripping down his brow, although that last one probably didn't have much to do with Jesse. Must've been at least ninety degrees, and the thick foliage would keep out even the most torrential winds, allowing him no respite from the sweltering, suffocating heat.

Which had him praying that Sophia had headed back towards the creek. In a summer heat wave, the kid wouldn't last more than a day without water. Dehydration would start kicking in after about six most likely, leaving her dizzy and light-headed. Thoughts jumbled and confused, unable to see straight, throat constricting as she wandered through the Georgia woods.

There was no way she would have wandered too far from the creek, he told himself firmly, willing himself to believe it. While Sophia might not have been raised in the woods like he was, she wasn't stupid; she'd know enough to stick close to fresh water. Besides, it wasn't like she could have even gotten that far.

His thoughts were ripped back to the other 'kid' as he spotted a particularly large splash of blood. Jesus if those two girls wouldn't be but the death of him.

Or at least, they'd be responsible for his ruined teeth, he thought mirthlessly, mentally forcing himself to unclench his jaw as he stepped out of the woods towards the house.

He felt anger building in his chest as he stared up at the old house that had caused him to break his own rules. Despite his long-lived by – and never previously broken – rule of 'thou shalt not hit a woman', he'd hit her _twice_, he thought guiltily. He knew he hadn't any many other options, if any really, but that didn't make him feel any better about it.

And that nasty feeling in the pit of his stomach had only gotten worse when Hershel had pulled the midget's shirt up to make sure she wasn't bleeding anywhere else. The long, jagged scar that ran from her underwear to two inches past her belly button had sickened him.

Sure, he had his fair share of scars. Well, more than his share, and weren't none of them really '_fair_', but still. The point remained that it pissed him off that somebody had cut her up like that.

He'd asked the old vet if it could have been some sort of surgical scar. Hadn't been surprised at all when the man had shaken his head.

Of course it hadn't. Really, when he thought about it, he supposed he would have been surprised if she hadn't had a few scars to show from her years in the Georgia Foster System.

Didn't mean it didn't make him see red at the thought of somebody hurting her like that.

Hell, it would've been like beating up a baby, he thought disgustedly, moving inside the house again. Even as an adult, the midget couldn't have been much more than five foot, if that. Maybe a hundred pounds. As a kid, she probably weren't no bigger than a damn toddler. Anybody who hurt a kid deserved a slow, and painful death in Daryl's mind, but to slice somebody Jesse's size up...

Well, Daryl Dixon didn't believe in God, but he believed there was a special Hell reserved for the bastard who'd done that.

* * *

Jesse hated regaining consciousness. She'd read or heard people describe it as slowly waking up; to her, it was more like wrestling her way through a pit of peanut butter, scratching and clawing her way back towards consciousness.

"Nggghhh."

_Well. That was helpful_, she thought ruefully, trying to force her eyes open.

"Jesse? You awake, honey?"

_Who the hell was that?_ She wondered, everything blurry and out of focus when she finally managed to open her eyes.

"Ughhhh."

"It's alright, Jesse. Just relax."

_Carol_, she realized, turning her head to the left, and seeing the flash of short gray hair.

"Da... Daryl?" Her voice sounded weak even to her own ears.

"He went back out. How are you feeling?"

Her vision finally cleared, and she realized she must have been in one of the bedrooms of the farmhouse as she glanced around, her head still pounding and spinning.

"Like shit."

"Well, Hershel says you'll be fine. Wants you to stay off that leg for a few days, but –"

"The hell I will," Jesse growled, forcing her fingers – which felt like lead – to pull the large quilt off the lower half of her body, belatedly realizing she wasn't wearing her jeans. "The hell's my pants?"

She was surprised at the firmness of Carol's hands, as she gently pushed her back down onto the bed, and pulled the blanket back over her.

"Hershel had to cut them off, so he could sew up your leg. And you _will_ take it easy. If you kill yourself, you'll be no good to anyone."

"Ain't no good ta anyone layin' in this damn bed," Jesse muttered, but she didn't try to get up again. Truth be told, she felt like hell, and weaker than a newborn baby. " 'Sides, what the hell am I supposed ta do in bed for two days?"

"Maybe rest, and heal?" The older woman said sardonically, making Jesse grunt.

"Oh yeah, that'll jus' be ass-loads a fun. I ain't sittin' here twiddlin' my thumbs for two damn days."

"Hershel has a well-stocked library, and there's plenty of people to keep you company," Carol said firmly. "I'm sure you'll live."

"Gee, I'm jus' thrilled."


	37. Chapter 37

A/N: Yay for another chapter! Which brings me to a question for y'all... Does it bother you that this has so many chapters? I've said for a long time I was going to try and split this up, break it down into a story for season one, and then another for season two, but I wasn't sure if I'd lose the reviews if I did that, so I thought if you guys didn't mind it being incredibly long, I'd leave it. Idk, tell me what you think. Secondly, I know that in this chapter, I make some of the other members of the camp a little bit out of character (you'll see what I mean), but... eh, I needed it lol. Never cared much for Rick, Lori, Andrea, or Dale lol.

Also... I usually don't respond to reviews in my chapter, but to the guest 'a reader' who commented about Jesse's height, and how she hadn't realized she was _that_ short... : ' ( I'm only 5'2"... And you made me want to cry lol. But thanks to all of you for your reviews, they seriously make my day. : )

* * *

It was starting to get dark by the time Daryl finally made his way back to the white farmhouse, his head hung low in exhaustion, shoulders, back, and legs aching from the long, fruitless day of searching.

He'd found a few faint traces of prints that _could_ have been Sophia's. _Could_, because the only thing left of them had been small, faint impressions of the tread of a sneaker. No way to tell what size the shoe had been, or how big the wearer had been.

Sophia's or not, he'd lost the trail less than half a mile from the house where he'd found it. At least the trail had been leading back towards the creek, which was a plus. A small one, especially when compared to the other events of the day, but a positive nonetheless. The only one he'd had as he'd spent the rest of the day searching for any signs of the little girl.

He passed through the hastily assembled camp, with little more than a grunt or a nod towards the members who asked him questions as he moved towards the house, instinct driving him to search out Sophia's mama, and the midget before he crashed... somewhere, as he belatedly realized he hadn't pitched his tent yet.

Hell, he thought, rubbing his eyes tiredly as he dragged himself up the stairs, at that particular moment, he'd throw a blanket down next to the fire pit, and sleep there, as long as it meant getting some _real_ damned sleep. He knew he'd be up before dawn again to go out looking, but he wasn't going to be any good to anybody if he didn't get at least four or five hours worth of sleep at some point.

He opened the door to the last bedroom on the right quietly, the dim lighting making his already over-tired eyes strain to pick out the shape of Carol in the corner.

"How's she doin'?" He asked, trying to keep his gruff voice quiet as he glanced over at the bed.

"_She's_ awake, an' '_she's'_ startin' ta get real tired of everybody talkin' 'bout '_her_' in the third damn person," Came a muttered, slurred response from the bed.

Carol chuckled a bit, rolling her eyes as she stood, stretching her arms above her head a bit. "We gave her two of those pain killers you had; she should have been asleep hours ago, but she said she wasn't going to sleep until you got back."

"Yeah, an' y'all said '_she_' couldn't do it," Jesse said, her voice sounding satisfied, if a bit weak.

Daryl grunted as he stepped towards the bed, folding his arms over his chest as he glanced down at the midget, who was attempting to glare at him, the effect ruined by her drooping eyelids, and slack, half-open mouth.

"An' '_she_' oughtta be asleep," He growled. " '_She_' got almost sixty stitches today, so '_she_' needs ta shut her damn mouth, an' get some rest."

"Ya find anythin'?"

Daryl sighed, cutting his eyes towards Carol. "Found some prints that might a been hers; followed 'em halfway back ta the creek 'fore I lost 'em again. Figured tomorrow I'd –" He was cut off by a yawn forcing its way out of his mouth. "– try walkin' that ridge. Get a good look at the layout."

* * *

Carol watched, a small smile coming to her face as Daryl plopped down on the floor next to the bed, his back resting against the nightstand, clearly as tired as Jesse was from their long day.

"I'll... I'll go with ya," Jesse said, her mouth nearly splitting under the force of her yawn.

"Ya gonna keep ya... damn ass in bed," Daryl shot back, another yawn cutting him off mid-sentence before he continued.

"Like... hell..."

She quietly stood, the smile growing as she realized that they were both already asleep, the hunter's head resting on the side of the bed, a few inches away from the girl's arm.

As she grabbed the extra blanket Hershel had given her earlier, and gently lay it over Daryl's lap, she couldn't help but shake her head in wonder.

She'd heard what some of the others had said about the 'Dixon Boys' before, back when they were still a few miles outside of Atlanta. She'd seen how the members of the group had taken Merle's words and actions, and put them on the younger Dixon brother. The words 'white trash', 'redneck', 'hick', and 'asshole' had been among some of the kinder terms she'd heard used to describe the Dixon boys.

She'd heard Andrea and Lori talking about Jesse; that, she supposed, could be attributed to the fact that the two older women had never really had to deal with another woman to put them in their place, something Jesse was starting to do with regularity.

But for everybody's demeaning looks and words about the two outsiders of the camp... It didn't escape Carol that they were the only two out there looking for her girl that day. The only two who hadn't stopped looking since she'd first gone missing. That Jesse was the only one other than Rick to have chased after Sophia, even though Lori, Shane, Dale, Andrea, and Glen were all right there.

But these two outsiders, these two 'criminals' – as Shane had called them earlier – were the ones doing the most to find her little girl. Were the ones running themselves into the ground trying to find a child that shouldn't have meant anything to either one of them.

As she quietly left the room, closing the door behind her, she couldn't help but wonder what that said about the human race. That the two fringe members of the group – the two who were considered almost sub-human – were the ones doing everything in their power to find Sophia.

And the two deputies, the perfect suburban house mom, and the civil rights attorney were sitting around on their asses bashing on the two outsiders, who were out looking for Sophia, while the rest stayed at the camp and nursed their minor wounds, and caught up on sleep.


	38. Chapter 38

A/N: Alright, so firstly... Gotta apologize for the very odd... oddness of this chapter, but seriously, it's not my fault! I went and watched 'The Hobbit' yesterday, and then of course I had to come home and read the book, and when I finished, I had to start on 'The Fellowship of The Ring', and the language got totally stuck in my head, and wouldn't come out lol. When I first wrote this, I hadn't even realized, but when I went to post it earlier this morning, I realized how weird it was, and I tried to fix it... but I failed miserably. : ( But I'm posting it anyways, because I want to keep moving on, and hopefully -if everything goes right -I'll have another chapter by late tonight, or early tomorrow. Also, for anyone interested, I've started a Merle/OFC fic. : ) As always, thanks for reading, thanks for reviewing, and enjoy.

* * *

Daryl had been dreaming. Dreaming what, he wasn't sure of, but he knew it had been something nice, before a noise had woke him up.

But the midget's head knocking into his chased the last remnants of the dream away, and he forced himself to open one eye, blue glaring up to meet gray.

"What the hell are ya doin'?" He seethed, unable to keep the harshness out of his voice.

"Ain't right; sleepin' in a bed, an' you on the floor," Jesse mumbled, still half-asleep as she swung her right leg off the side of the bed, and started hauling herself down off the bed.

"Jesse –" His harsh lecture was cut off as she tumbled off the bed, bringing half the blankets with her as she fell in his lap.

Daryl groaned, feeling a dull ache shoot up his back, and through his shoulders, exhaustion still pulling at his eyes as he tried shoving the midget back up on the bed.

But she giggled, burrowing further into the blanketed mess on his lap, a look of contentment on her face as she closed her eyes.

_Giggled_? He frowned, snaking his hand out from where she had it pinned to his lap, and set it on her forehead, his irritation turning to concern.

"Jesus, Shorty, ya burnin' up. Didn't they give ya one a those antibiotics?" He growled, picking up the whole bundle of blankets with her in the center, pushing himself to his feet and plopping the now-squirming mess on the bed.

"Hey!" Came a weak, but indignant squawk.

"Shush! Gonna wake the whole damn house!" Daryl bit out, moving around the bed towards the pill bottles on the other nightstand, flicking the switch on the little lamp. "Did they give ya one a these or not?

"Was supposed ta take another one 'fore I went ta sleep."

"Did ya?" He ground out, his teeth clenched.

"No."

"Christ. C'mon, sit up," He said exasperatedly, popping the lid off of the bottle, and pulling one of the large pills out, and moving back towards her. "Here. Take this."

She complied, swallowing the pill down easily, before giving him what he assumed was supposed to be a pointed look, as she patted the bed next to her.

"Go ta sleep, Shorty," He growled, snatching a pillow, and laying it on the floor.

"I'll come down there again," She said, a warning tone in her voice, despite the yawn interrupting her mid-sentence. "Damn full size... full size bed. No reason for ya ta be sleepin' on the damn floor."

He rolled his eyes as he lay back down, the pillow doing wonders for his neck, even on the hardwood floor. "I'm covered in dirt an' shit," He said with a snort, closing his eyes again. "Jus' go ta sleep."

Even in the dark, he could feel her eyes on him, so he rolled over again, determined to ignore her.

* * *

Carol was up with the dawn as usual, although she wasn't surprised to see that no one else in the small camp was awake as she made her way up towards the house.

"Good morning."

Carol jumped a little, startled at Hershel's voice. "Oh! Oh, good morning, Mr. Greene."

The old vet smiled at her. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. I was just a little surprised to see someone else up and about this early," He said with a chuckle.

"Well, I just wanted to check on Jesse. Has Daryl left yet, do you know?"

"Daryl? I'll assume he's the young man who brought her here yesterday. But no, you're the first person I've seen, and I've been sitting here for almost an hour now."

Carol sat nervously, fingers fidgeting in her lap. "I... Well, thank you for opening your home to us. I can't imagine you like strangers much," She said with an uneasy chuckle. "But we appreciate it."

Now it was Hershel's turn to look uncomfortable, Carol thought ruefully, as the man coughed a little, shifting around in his chair before changing the subject.

"That girl I patched up yesterday. Does she have any family with you?"

"No. Jesse..." Carol frowned as she thought for a moment. "Well, I don't know where her family is, or if she has any. She just sort of... showed up in our camp back in Atlanta a few weeks ago."

"So... Daryl isn't her brother then. Boyfriend?"

"What?! No, of course not! Daryl just sort of... well, he watches out for her. They're both outdoor people, from what I can gather, and they don't... The rest of the group..." Carol stopped, her face a little red, unwilling to share her feelings about the group's attitudes to the elderly man.

But he seemed to understand anyways, as he nodded, a thoughtful frown on his face.

"Well, I better get up and check on them," Carol said quickly, pushing herself to her feet. "Daryl will want to get back out there soon, and I imagine I'll have to strap Jesse to the bed to keep her from going back out today," She added with a chuckle.


	39. Chapter 39

A/N: Alright folks... I PROMISE the next chapter will get back to it's normal, quick-paced self... Probably packed with angst and the like, because hey... That's just what I do. : ) But anyways, I apologize again for the delay, and the slight oddness/choppiness of the chapter. : ( But thanks to all of you who have read, special thanks to those of you who have reviewed. Enjoy. : )

PS: I skipped over a lot (like Daryl's first trip down, back up, and then down the cliff again), but I'm trying to keep this moving along lol.

* * *

Carol couldn't keep the smile from her face as she entered the bedroom, the sight before her easily one of the cutest things she'd seen in a long time.

Daryl was half-sitting, half-laying on the floor, head leaning against the bed, feet stretched out in front of him, one hand under his head, the other laying on the small of Jesse's back.

She didn't know which one of them had created the little make-shift bed of blankets and pillows that Jesse was laying on, but she assumed it had probably been Daryl. Although she imagined he probably hadn't planned on the small girl using his lap for a pillow, or curling herself so close to him, all wrapped up in the blanket as she was.

But it was a cute sight, nonetheless, she thought with a chuckle as she gently closed the door behind her.

She regretted the noise instantly, as Daryl's eyes flew open, blinking a few times, before latching on to her face.

She had to fight to keep from smiling as she seen the warring look on his face. She knew his first instinct was to shove the girl off of him, to get out of the awkward situation as quickly as possible. But that was warring with his desire not to wake the girl, or manhandle her like that.

Finally, he settled on a mixture of the two, grabbing a pillow, and sliding it under his head as he slide out from underneath her, standing up, and walking over to her, his face red as a tomato.

"She uh... She said she wasn't gonna sleep on the bed 'less I did... Figured the ol' vet wouldn't like me dirtyin' up his white sheets, so..." His voice trailed off, before he grunted, grabbing his boots off the floor, and sliding them on. "She was runnin' hot last night, so I gave her one a the antibiotics; brought it down a bit, but she's still a little hot."

Carol sighed as she followed him out of the bedroom. "Sorry, I... I probably should have given her another one before I left last night, but I wasn't sure how often she could take them."

" 'Bout every eight hours 'til her fever comes down," Daryl said gruffly, as they made their way downstairs. "Give her another one when she wakes up. I should be back 'fore she needs another one tonight."

"You're going out again?" Carol asked as he sat down on the porch steps, and started tying his boots.

"Yeah. Was thinkin' I'd borrow a horse, an' head up to a ridge I saw on that map; should be able to get a pretty good look at the layout from up there."

"You shouldn't go out by yourself," Carol said quietly, folding her arms over her chest.

"I ain't gonna; Rick, Shane, T-Dog, an' the blonde gonna go out. We got it cut up in ta grids." The younger man hesitated for a moment, before laying a hand on her shoulder awkwardly. "We're gonna find her."

The gesture brought a fresh well of tears to her eyes, knowing how uncomfortable it must have made the hunter.

"I... Thank you," She managed to say, her voice hoarse with the effort of holding the tears back. "Thank you."

He pulled his hand away quickly, giving her a slight nod. "Keep an eye on the midget for me?"

"Of course."

* * *

"Why don't ya pull that arrow out, dummy? Could bind ya wound better."

Daryl chuckled, even that small movement making his head spin again, knowing he must be in pretty bad shape if he was seeing his older brother.

"Merle," He gasped softly.

"What's goin' on here? You takin' a siesta?"

"Havin' a shitty day, bro," Daryl said weakly, knowing that 'shitty' didn't even begin to cover the day he was having right then.

"Like me to get you a pillow? Maybe rub your feet?"

"Screw you." Daryl was already hating whatever fucked up part of his brain had decided to hallucinate Merle, of all damn people.

"Nuh huh. You're the one who's screwed, from the looks of it. All them years I spent, tryin' ta make a man a ya. This what I get? Look at ya. Lyin' in the dirt like a used up rubber. You're gonna _die_ out here, little brother. An' for what?"

"A girl. They lost their little girl."

"What, you got a thing for little girls now? Notice you gettin' real friendly with that pretty young midget."

"Shut up."

"Why ain't you out lookin' for Ol' Merle no more?"

"Tried like hell ta find you, bro."

"Like hell you did. You split, man. Lit out first chance you got."

"You lit out," Daryl muttered. "All you had to do was wait. We went back for ya. Me an' Jesse... We did right by you."

"This the same Jesse who's pants ya tryin' ta get into? 'Cause I think if you'd taken somebody with longer legs, I might not have had to cut my damn hand off."

Daryl frowned at that, his eyes latching on to the hallucination of his brother, noticing that the image still had both hands.

"You their _bitch_ now?" Merle's words pulled Daryl back, and he glared.

"I ain't _nobody's_ bitch."

"You're a _joke_, is what ya are," His older brother said disdainfully. "Playin' errand boy for a bunch of pansy asses, democrats, and niggers. You an' that girl? You two ain't nothin' but freaks to them. Redneck trash. That's all ya are. They's laughin' at ya 'hind ya back. Ya know that, don't ya? Sendin' you an' that midget out by ya selves, lookin' for somebody else's brat, like two trained hound dogs. But I got news for ya, son... One a these days... They's gonna scrape you off they heels like ya was dog shit."

Daryl closed his eyes, determined to ignore his brother.

"Hey! Don't you ignore me, little brother. Them people? They ain't ya _kin_; ya _blood_. Hell, you had any balls in that sac a yours, you'd go back an' shoot your pal Rick right in the face for me. Now you listen to me... Ain't _nobody_ gonna ever care 'bout you 'cept me, little brother. An' ain't nobody ever will. Not even that little slut a yours. She ain't interested in nothin' but a good lay. An' since we both know that's never been your strong point..."

"Fuck you."

"Hey, none a that now. C'mon, little brother. Get up on ya feet, 'fore I have ta kick ya teeth in."


	40. Chapter 40

A/N: Alright so... Firstly, I apologize for the delay in posting this. I've fallen into a rut as far as writing goes; lately, everything I've been trying to write for my Walking Dead fics has been coming out really stiff, and disjointed. Even this one is kinda awkward, and I apologize for that too. All that being said, I don't know when I'll update this next. It might be a week or so, until I figure out what I'm doing wrong, and figure out how to fix it lol. But thank you to everyone who's been reading, and special thanks to those of you who have been reviewing. Y'all rock. : )

* * *

"What do you think you're doing?"

Jesse looked up, snorting at the look on Rick's face as she continued fletching the arrows she'd already carved. "What's it look like I'm doin'?"

"I thought Carol was keeping an eye on you! You're supposed to be in bed."

"Had Glen help me out here." She didn't mention how embarrassing it had been to let the Asian kid carry her down the stairs, and out onto the front porch. How having Carol wrap the blanket around her legs had sent a nervous, twittering feeling through her gut. Didn't tell the man how awkward it had been to beg his son to get her some branches to make her arrows, and feathers from the chickens to fletch with.

"Is Hershel okay with this?"

"He said I had to stay off my leg, an' I'm stayin' off it," Jesse growled, holding the arrow she was working on close to her eye, staring down the shaft to make sure it was straight, and the feathers just slightly curved before setting it on her growing pile, and turning her glare to Rick. "Thought you was out lookin' for the girl."

Rick sighed as he leaned against the railing. "We were. Shane and I cleared our section of the grid. Didn't see anything. Figured we'd grab a bit to eat, and head out again. Should have a few hours before it gets dark."

"Gee, hate ta think a _you an' Shane_ out there hungry," Jesse said bitterly, glaring at Rick. "Heart jus' 'bout bre –"

"Walker! Walker!"

Andrea's loud cry cut Jesse off, as both Jesse and Rick's heads spun, looking in the direction the blonde on the RV was pointing. Sure enough, they could see a lone figure just exiting the treeline.

"Stay here," Rick ordered, before darting off.

"The hell I will," Jesse grunted, pushing herself to her feet, and grabbing her bow, and one of the newly made arrows. She could feel the pain lance up her leg, feel the stretching of the skin and stitches as she gimped along as quick as she could after him, seeing Shane, T-Dog, and Glen following from the camp as they all raced towards the field.

Glen was the first one to notice. "Is that –"

"Daryl!"

The word flew from Jesse's mouth, as she raced closer, before Shane's arm swung out, and caught her around the waist. "Stop!"

"Lemme go!"

But Shane only tightened his grip, and Jesse that was when Jesse noticed the blood covering the hunter.

Panic coursed through her. Had he been bit? Had he already turned?

"Third time you pointed that thing at my head," Daryl growled, shooting Rick a pissed look, as he swayed on his feet. "Gonna pull the trigger or what?"

As soon as he'd spoken, Jesse yanked herself free of Shane's grip, practically throwing herself on Daryl, arms wrapping around his middle, relief coursing through her, as she buried her head against his chest, only his slight moan causing her to back off.

"Jesus, ya scared the shit outta me! What the hell happened?!" She demanded, looking him over, her stomach twisting in knots as she did, seeing the blood soaking through his shirt, dripping over his eye from a gash on the right side of his head.

"Nothin'. M'fine," He muttered, wrapping one arm around her, and pulling her close, a move that both startled and surprised her. But she relaxed into his half-embrace anyways, ignoring the pain shooting through her entire leg as he leaned on her, turning into dead weight against her. "Ain't ya supposed ta be –"

A shot rang out, and before Jesse could even begin to process what was happening, Daryl lurched out of her hold, falling backwards, a line of blood appearing on the other side of his head.

"No! No!" She screamed, falling on her knees next to him.

"Jesus, I was kiddin'."

_Oh thank Christ._

"Get outta the way!" Shane barked, shoving her aside as he and Rick picked the hunter up off the ground, and began carrying him back towards the camp.

Jesse was trying to catch her breath, as she pushed herself to her feet, her relief at Daryl's being okay quickly fading into anger, as she seen Andrea racing towards them.

* * *

"Oh my God! Oh my God, is he dead?!"

"Unconscious," Rick said shortly, shoving by her. "You just grazed him." He'd told her to let them handle it; told her to not to shoot. But she just couldn't listen, he thought bitterly. He wasn't sure what he was more pissed about: that she'd taken the shot, after he'd told her not to, or that – if it had been a Walker, and not Daryl – that she'd missed anyways, firing off a shot for nothing, and possibly drawing actual Walkers down on their head.

"You fuckin' bitch!"

_Shit._

Rick turned just in time to see Jesse throw herself on the blonde, both of them hitting the ground with a loud thud, before the sickening sound of knuckles on flesh started.

"You could a killed him, you stupid cow!"

"Jesse, stop –"

Dale's arm on the girl seemed to have no affect, other than pissing her off even more, as the black-haired girl lashed out, sending Dale reeling backwards, before she turned her attention back to Andrea.

"For the love a..." Shane's muttered curse trailed off, as he released his grip on Daryl, and moved over to grab Jesse around her waist. "Get off a her!"

"Fuck you! I'm gonna kill you, you fuckin' bitch!"

It took ended up taking both Shane and Glen to pull the psychotic little runt off, still cursing and screaming as they made their way through the field.

"What on earth is going on out here?!" Hershel demanded as they made their way back up towards the house.

"Daryl's injured," Rick bit out, carrying most of the man's weight on his shoulders, his back protesting the weight.

Hershel took one glance at the injured hunter, before sighing. "Get him upstairs. And you, young lady!" He snapped, looking at the still-struggling Jesse. "Looks like you've gone and ripped your stitches. So now I'm going to have to waste valuable medical supplies because you can't figure out how to listen. Hopefully it doesn't impact your friend over here."


	41. Chapter 41

A/N: Alright so... Really, really unsure about this chapter, and how it turned out. Let me know what y'all think; if you think it's too much, I'll take it down, and try something else. Again, I'm just... very, very not sure how I feel about this chapter. : (

Warning: mentions of underage sexual abuse. Nothing graphic.

* * *

Jesse managed to keep quiet until after the others had left, even while Hershel restitched her entire leg. But once the door had closed behind Rick and Shane, she turned her head a bit, looking over at Daryl, who was laying on his side facing her, although his eyes were closed.

"Looks like somebody used ya for a damn cuttin' board," She said quietly, trying to keep her voice neutral, and failing. She couldn't pull her eyes from the grotesque sight of his chest, covered in scarred over gashes and cuts. _Christ, it looked like somebody had tried to claw his damn heart out._

"Yeah? Well, from what I saw, _you_ don't look much better under that shirt," Daryl said shortly, not opening his eyes. "Looks like somebody tried to _gut_ you."

She instinctively tensed. Of course he'd seen _it_. The old vet had probably pulled her shirt up to check for more cuts, although probably not all the way off, if Daryl only commented on the one.

"So what happened?" Daryl asked, finally cracking open one eye to stare intently at her.

She snorted as she rolled over. "None a your damn business," She snapped. "How come we always end up talkin' 'bout _me_? You sure like ta _ask_ the questions, but ya get mighty damn pissy when anybody asks you somethin'."

There were a few minutes of tense silence, the room practically vibrating with it, as she angrily swiped at the tears in her eyes.

"My ol' man... let's jus' say he liked ta drink."

Jesse rolled over, the shock obvious on her face. "Your _dad_ did that to ya?" She asked, a little disbelieving.

Growing up in foster homes, she'd had always thought that her foster parents treated her the way they did because she wasn't their child. It made sense to her, in a way: people _always_ treated other people worse than they did their own family. She kind of figured her life growing up was just an... _extreme_ version of that unspoken rule of humanity. But to do that to _your own flesh and blood... To your own kid..._

She couldn't help herself as she reached out with one hand, setting it across the 'X' that had been cut into the side of his ribcage. She could feel his whole body tense underneath her palm, and she quickly drew her hand back.

* * *

"What'd ya think?" Daryl asked with a snort, relief flowing through him as soon as the midget removed her hand. "Tellin' me some fuckin' '_bully_' or some shit did that to your stomach?"

"Well, no, but... They were my _foster_ parents," Jesse said, as if it explained, or justified something. "Can't imagine... I mean, ta do that ta your own _kid_."

"The hell's the difference, Shorty? They was supposed ta take care a you. Not... do whatever the fuck it was they did," He growled, glaring at her. "So I told _you_, now you tell _me_: what the hell _did_ they do?"

The midget sighed, rolling back onto her back, gazing up at the ceiling, as she quietly said, "I was pregnant."

Daryl's eyes widened as he saw the tears in her eyes. Unable to stop himself, he found himself reaching over, and grasping her hand lightly, as she continued.

"Hell, I didn't even know what was goin' on. Didn't know nothin' 'bout bein' pregnant, or anythin' like that."

"How old were ya?"

"Ten."

Daryl's hand tightened on hers. "Ten? Who the fuck... How the hell did ya... What sick bastard would sleep with a goddamn _ten_ _year old_?" He finally managed to put a coherent sentence together, despite the anger building in his chest. What kind of sick fucking pervert would knock up a goddamn ten year old?

"My foster dad. I... I managed ta hide it for almost six months. I mean, I didn't know exactly what was goin' on, but I knew somethin' wasn't right, ya know? Knew I couldn't let anybody find out. But then all the sudden... It seemed like overnight, I turned in ta some sorta fuckin' beach ball. Went from havin' a little bit a extra pudge, ta havin' a fuckin' balloon in my belly. Wasn't no hidin' it after that. When Tom seen it... Good Lord, think it's the only time I ever seen him afraid. The next night... I was sleepin', an' I heard the door open... An' I knew it was him comin' in, but I knew better than ta fight, or try an' run. I learned real fast was better ta jus' let him do it, an' get it over with, ya know? He was a lot nicer if I didn't fight back.

"But then I seen the knife. An' I tried fightin' him off, but... Hell, ya think I'm short _now_? Back then I was maybe four foot. Nothin' I could do when he started cuttin'," She finished quietly.

"What... What happened ta the baby?" Daryl asked thickly, not knowing what else to say.

Jesse snorted quietly, scrubbing the tears from her face with one hand. "He ended up... He sliced his head off tryin' ta cut him out. Docs tol' me later it was a boy," She added with a sad smile. "When I woke up in the hospital... The doctors said that... They said that Tom had cut me up so bad that... The hospital had ta do an emergency hysterectomy. That I wouldn't never be able ta have kids again."

Daryl couldn't take it anymore. Almost without thinking, he pulled the midget over to him, pressing her back against his chest, and wrapping his arm around her, as she started crying harder onto his other arm. He didn't know what else to do -and just what the hell was he supposed to say that would make her feel any better - so he just laid his head in the crook of her neck, and held her tightly, until her tears started to subside.


	42. Chapter 42

A/N: Alright, so the first thing I have to say is massive thank yous to all the reviews on the last chapters, with special thanks going out to isopt, and LibbyTaylor. I know I can be a wee bit insecure at times, but you two have no idea how much your reviews meant to me. All of the reviews were great, and thanks to you all. Anyways, here's the next chapter. Hope y'all enjoy. : )

* * *

Carol was fighting to remain quiet as she listened through the door, the poor girl's story nearly breaking her heart in two.

She hadn't meant to eavesdrop, really. She'd brought up two plates of food, figuring they'd both probably be starving after their long day. She doubted Daryl had remembered to eat anything other than the pop-tart she'd given him before he'd left the camp that morning, and she knew Jesse hadn't eaten; the poor thing had been too busy staring off at the woods most of the day, worrying herself to distraction, presumably about Daryl being out there alone, although Carol knew Jesse would give her an earful if the older woman even suggested such a thing.

So before she'd eaten, after everyone had just sat down, she'd started filling two plates. She'd been the only one who'd remembered the two injured people laying upstairs, all other eyes guiltily avoiding looking at her, the chattering stopping, when she'd silently loaded two plates with food, before heading towards the stairs.

Of course they hadn't thought of Daryl and Jesse. After all, why would they? she'd thought bitterly. The two outsiders had only been _injured_ looking for _her_ child. Andrea had only shot Daryl in the _head, _yet another thing to add to the list of counter-productive things the blonde woman had done. Everyone was sitting around enjoying a meal that Carol had done most of the work for – hell, it'd been her idea in the first place – laughing, joking, and bantering back and forth as if they didn't have a care in the world, while her daughter was out in the woods somewhere, hungry and cold, and the two people who'd done the most to try and find Sophia were upstairs, nursing their wounds in private.

But she'd kept her thoughts to herself, knowing it would only add more unnecessary discord to the already very fragile state of their group, as she'd headed up the stairs with the plates carefully arranged to fit on one tray, stopping at the door to knock softly.

She'd figured they'd both probably been asleep; after all, they'd had a hell of a day, and they'd both taken another pain pill and antibiotic each after Hershel had finished sewing them up. So she was surprised when she heard Jesse's quiet voice.

"...Nothin' I could do when he started cuttin'."

"What happened to the baby?"

"He ended up... He sliced his head off tryin' ta cut him out. Docs tol' me later it was a boy. When I woke up in the hospital... The doctors said that... They said that Tom had cut me up so bad that... The hospital had ta do an emergency hysterectomy. That I wouldn't never be able ta have kids again."

Carol nearly dropped the tray in her shock, horror and pity washing over her. Jesse couldn't have been much older than eighteen. To think that she'd been pregnant at such a young age...

_And then to have someone..._

She felt her gorge rise up in her throat, and she had to fight back the urge to puke as she heard soft sobs.

_Oh God._

She forced herself to take a few deep breathes, trying to get the tears streaming down her face under control. She knew the girl's story had been for Daryl, and Daryl alone; Jesse wouldn't appreciate the fact that Carol had overheard.

So she took a few minutes to compose herself, before opening the door quickly, not bothering to knock as she stepped inside the small room.

If the sight she'd seen that morning had been 'cute', the one that greeted her eyes that night could only be described as 'heart-breaking'. Daryl had his back to her – _and the scars she seen there alone would have been enough to break her heart _– one arm wrapped around Jesse, who seemed to be asleep, Daryl holding her tightly against his chest, a large quilted blanket pulled haphazardly over the two of them, looking for all the world like two lost, broken little children, all alone in the world.

At least, they did in that split second before Daryl turned his head towards her, his blue eyes flashing dangerously at the intrusion, his gaze only softening a bit when he seen that it was Carol.

"I brought you some food," Carol forced her voice to sound normal as she set the tray on the nightstand. "Figured you two were probably starving. It's not much, but..." She shrugged, unsure of what else to say.

Daryl's eyes fell on the food, looking like a ravenous animal, and Carol would have swore he was almost salivating at the sight. He started to reach around for it, when he seemed to remember the small body pinning one half of him to the bed, Jesse shifting around a little as Daryl's movement disturbed her sleep. Only a brief flash of annoyance crossed his face, before he sighed, and turned his back to her again, settling back into the position he'd been in before he'd moved.

"How are you feeling?" Carol asked quietly, after a few seconds of awkward silence.

"Had better days," Came the grunted reply, but she didn't miss the way his arm tightened around the girl's waist, or the slight twitch of his face.

Carol sighed, before bending down, and planting a light, quick kiss on his bandaged head. His head whipped around, confusion and disbelief crossing his face, before he quickly turned away again.

"What's that for?" He muttered.

"I just... I wanted you to know that... well, you two have down more for my little girl these past few days than her own daddy did his whole life," She said quietly.

"Weren't nothin' Rick or Shane wouldn't a done."

Carol shook her head. "But they _didn't_, Daryl. Today was the first day either of them went out. You've been out there _every_ _day_ since she's been missing."

A grunt was her only response.

The two of them were certainly an interesting pair, Carol thought with a sad smile as she left the room, quietly closing the door behind her. So alike, and yet so different at the same time. Daryl, who seemed to be struggling to prove his worth to the group, and Jesse, who seemed to have nothing but disdain for any of them other than Daryl, who she'd latched onto like some sort of lifeline.

Well, like does draw to like, she supposed. She hadn't had to hear Jesse's story, or see Daryl's torn up back to know that they were both seriously damaged individuals. It'd been obvious from the first time the Dixon brothers had stepped foot into the camp, or when Jesse had shown up out of nowhere. The suspicion, and deep-rooted mistrust had been obvious in both of them, giving silent testimony to the hard lives they'd lived. Hell, the two of them were probably more damaged than she herself was.

Maybe that was why she was finding herself drawn to the odd little pair, she thought ruefully, as she made her way back downstairs to the rest of the group.


	43. Chapter 43

A/N: Alrighty so firstly sorry it took so long for the update, and that it's such a short update at that... But hopefully now that things have calmed down a wee bit, I should be able to start knocking the chapters out again. Be forewarned, the next chapter won't really have any Daryl or Jesse, rather the rest of the camp's interpretations, feelings, etc., about them. So far, I've kind of had the two of them existing in a vacuum, and I want to show that -despite everything else - they are still a part of the group. So... yeah. Anyways, thanks for reading, special thanks for reviewing, and enjoy. : )

* * *

Daryl was drifting, somewhere between sleeping and a foggy awareness, the only way he knew how to sleep after a lifetime of paranoia and violence. It was a habit he'd started as a young child, to try and lessen the amount of damage his father could do when the old man would catch him completely unaware. That extra few seconds sometimes meant the difference between getting a bruise, or ending up on the floor, unable to get up.

By the time he'd hit his teen years, he'd developed the habit enough to be able to remain in the half-and-half state through most background noises; a necessary thing, given that he spent most of his time with Merle, who could snore louder than a tractor trailer downshifting on the highway, or the sounds of the forest when the two brothers would go hunting.

So when he heard the soft, quiet rustling of the blankets, with an almost silent squeak of the bed springs, it barely even pinged on his radar at the time, more like a subconscious tick in the back of his mind as nothing that posed a threat. The cold air hitting his chest registered a little bit more, but he still drifted along in his haze, unwilling to let go of the much-needed slumber that he hadn't had in so long.

But he was violently yanked into full awareness when he felt something – _hands?_ – fumbling with the buckle of his belt.

Instantly – _automatically_ – he lashed out, grunting as his arm connected with flesh, and he heard a muffled yelp as he reached out with the other hand, switching on the light. Almost before he knew what he was doing, he found himself standing by the door, panting heavily, his eyes searching out the threat, only to finally settle on the midget laying on the floor, one hand held up to her bleeding nose.

"Jesus fuckin' Christ, girl!" He hissed, striding forward, and roughly yanking her off the floor before shoving her onto the bed. "What the _fuck_ is wrong with ya?"

The shock and confusion were clear on the girl's as she stared up at him, her eyes wide, blood pooling down onto her lips, which opened and closed for a second, before she stuttered, "I... I just... I thought... You were... I mean... But you..."

Daryl's eyes narrowed. "Ain't never seen you at a loss for words,Shorty. So what the _fuck_ do ya think ya were doin'?" He growled, leaning in, so he could look at her face better.

"I was just... You were being nice an' all... Jus' figured I'd... I'd make you feel better, ya know?"

Daryl drew back, feeling as if she'd slapped him as he dropped into the chair.

"Wha... Why the hell would ya... Jesus, kid! You's nine kinds a fucked in the head, ain't ya? Jesus Christ, what the _hell_ did ya foster parents do ta ya?"

"I was jus' tryin'... I mean... I jus' thought that you'd..."

Daryl opened his mouth – although in all honesty, he had no idea what he was going to say – when he glanced down, and seen the girl's leg. He could see where at least a few stitches had ripped – probably when he had thrown her – and blood was starting to drip down her thigh below the pair of pj shorts she'd gotten from one of the farmer's daughters, the liquid red making a small pool next to her on the bed.

"Shit, Shorty," He swore softly, pushing himself back to his feet, and dropping to his knees next to her, and inspecting the large gash. She'd ripped at least a dozen stitches. "Ya really hate this damn leg, don't ya? S'what, third time stitchin'?"

When she didn't say anything, he looked up, and seen a few tears falling down her face.

_Fuck_.

"Uh... stay put," He mumbled, moving over to the night stand, and grabbing the needle and thread, and moving back to her. "I um... I can... can sew that up if ya want."

"Yeah. Sure."

He frowned at the dull, numb tone to Jesse's voice, but he threaded the needle with the black thread, and set it against her skin before he took another look up at her. "Gonna hurt," He said warningly.

"Don't matter."

Daryl sighed as he pushed the needle through the pale skin of her thigh. "Don't tense," He said warningly. "It'll fuck up the stitches."

"Sorry."

Daryl grunted, focusing his mind on the task at hand, as made quick work of it, adding ten – his stitches weren't nearly as small and neat as the vet's had been – to her leg, and tying off the end.

"That... That oughtta hold ya over til mornin'," He said, the awkwardness setting in, as he realized just how close he was to her. "I uh... I gotta... Gotta take a leak."

It was a piss poor excuse to leave, and he knew it. When he finally dared to glance up at the midget's face, he could see that she knew it too.

Didn't change the fact that he needed to get out of that damn room. Needed to clear his head.

Needed to get away from the kid, who had his insides all sorts of knotted up, and his brain aching trying to figure her out.

"I'm sorry."

Her sad little voice nearly made him turn around again; made him want to hold her again, give her some small bit of comfort if he could.

But given how that had turned out the last time he'd tried it...

He didn't look back as he closed the door behind him, stalked down the stairs, and out of the house into the cool Georgia night.


	44. Chapter 44

A/N: Alrighty so... This chapter didn't turn out quite how I wanted it to, but since I'm eager to get up 'Pretty Much Dead Already', I decided to post it anyways just to keep moving things along. And for all of you out there wondering... I promise that Daryl and Jesse will end up 'together' fairly soon. Probably no more than three or four chapters. I actually have that particular scene all thought out and planned, which is practically unheard of for me lol. Usually I just fly by the seat of my pants, and end up in lala land, trying to pull myself back into the plot. But that being said, if there's any specific scenes, or ideas, or whatever that you would like to see, or thoughts that you might have to improve, or even just to add to this, please, feel free. I love hearing from you guys period, but I really love hearing your thoughts and ideas. : )

* * *

"Mind if I sit?" Carol asked quietly, coming up behind Jesse, who'd been laying out on the grass.

She gasped when the girl's arm swung around, catching her around her knees, and knocking her onto the ground, moments before she found Jesse's knees on her chest, forcing the air out of her lungs, the small arm against her throat. Carol only had a few seconds, her life flashing before her eyes as she struggled to suck a breath in through her constricting airways…

And then suddenly she could breathe again. She felt more than saw Jesse climb off her, the weight lifting.

"Aw, Jesus, Carol," She heard Jesse mutter as she sat up. "M'sorry. Ya jus' spooked me."

She cut her gaze to the left, and seen Jesse sitting with one leg underneath her, the leg with stitches stretched out in front of her, panting heavily, one hand over her eyes.

"No, no, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you, I… I didn't know you were sleeping," Carol said, a little overwhelmed as she leaned over, and set a hand on the girl's shoulder, ignoring the small flinch. "I'm fine. Really."

"I'm sorry, I jus'… I'm sorry. I didn't mean it," Jesse said, biting her lip as she sighed. "Jus' had a long night, ya know?"

Carol moved over a few feet, and putting an arm around Jesse. "I noticed. Daryl's been snapping at anyone who's come close all morning. Want to talk about it?"

Jesse shook her head, and Carol was surprised when the girl lay her head on her shoulder, leaning into her embrace.

"Jesse… I know… I know life hasn't exactly been… easy," Carol said hesitantly, wrapping her arm around her a bit tighter. "But you and Daryl… The world's gone to hell, Jesse. Things have gotten turned upside down, and… all there is anymore is death, and ugliness… But these past few days, watching you and Daryl together…" She chuckled as she ran her hand through Jesse's curly black hair. "You two are good together."

"We ain't together. He don't like me. Or he's gay," The girl muttered, swiping at her eyes angrily.

Carol snorted before she could help herself, that particular idea sounding as far-fetched as her having wings. "I highly doubt he's gay, honey."

"Don't call me that."

"Um… Okay. But I don't think he doesn't like you. Do you know, before you showed up, he hadn't said more than a handful of words to anyone other than Merle? Never ate with us, never sat with us..."

Jesse scoffed as she pulled away. "Yeah. Sure."

* * *

"Hey, Daryl, you uh… you got a minute?"

The look in the rougher man's eyes nearly made Andrea back out of the tent, but she entered anyways, sitting down on the cot across from him.

"I uh… I brought you this," She said awkwardly, handing him the book she'd grabbed from Hershel's library. "It's not much, but uh…"

Daryl flipped through it quickly, barely glancing at it, before throwing it on the floor. "What, no pictures?" He said gruffly, glaring over at her.

"Look, I just… I'm sorry. About what happened. I'm so sorry."

"You was tryin' to protect the group. We're good," He growled, rolling over away from her.

Andrea frowned, knowing that she should take the clear dismissal for what it was, but –_seeing as how she'd shot the man in the head the previous_ _day_–she figured she owed him to try and figure out what had him so damn pissed off.

"Um… You uh… Something on your mind?"

"Do I look like I need some sort a damn confessional? Jesus, what is it with you damn women? Can't leave me 'lone for two fuckin' minutes? Christ Almighty!"

Ah. Understanding washed over Andrea. "So problems with you and the little psycho, huh?" She asked with a chuckle. A chuckle that quickly turned to a curse as Daryl grabbed the book from the floor, and chucked it at her head. "What the hell?!"

"She ain't a psycho, an' no, we ain't havin' _problems_, 'cause we ain't _together_! Fuck, what the hell is wrong with y'all?! You women is fuckin' crazy, that's the damn problem! Used ta think _I_ had problems, but you bitches take the fuckin' cake, ya really do!" He spat, his eyes positively murderous.

"If you two love-birds are having problems, go take it up with her!" Andrea said indignantly, standing, and sending him a glare right back. "Don't take my head 'cause you two are arguing!"

"She's eight-fuckin'-teen! She's the size of a Goddamn ten year old! She's been fucked over her whole Goddamn life, an' y'all seem ta think I should jus' be the next damn asshole in her life, huh?! That I should jus' fuckin' jump in her Goddamn pants, an' be jus' another name on the fuckin' list a people who screwed her up?!"

Andrea sighed as she sat back down, everything suddenly falling into place. It all made sense when she thought about it, and a small piece of her felt guilty for not connecting the dots. "She was abused?"

Daryl held the glare for a minute, before dropping back onto the bed with a sigh, shoulders slumping as he hung his head. "Probably; but last night… we was talkin'… Her foster daddy… He got her pregnant. She was ten fuckin' years old. Ten, an' the bastard fuckin' raped her, an' when she got pregnant, he cut her open, killed the baby… I… You know, all night I was thinkin'… Maybe we deserved this shit, ya know? Lookin' at that kid, an' Sophia an' her mama… Fuck," He finished quietly.

It took Andrea a few minutes to remember how to breath, as Daryl's words sunk in, and even then, it was only abstractly. Just words.

That's what her professors in college had taught her. Don't get involved, don't let the cases affect you. 'Ten', 'pregnant', 'rape', 'cut'… they were all just words. Don't think about what they meant.

_Don't think about the short, child-sized teenager as a little girl. A pregnant little girl, raped by her foster father._

Her mouth was dry, and her jaw opened and closed a few times as she struggled to find words. More words. Words that didn't mean anything either, she thought bitterly.

When she finally met Daryl's eyes, she seen her own look mirrored on his face as he chewed on his fingernail.

"Yeah. S'bout how I felt," He said quietly.


	45. Chapter 45

A/N: Alright so... Yeah, this is filler. And really, it's not even good filler. I'm in a hurry to catch up to 'Pretty Much Dead Already', so y'all are just gonna have to live with it lol. Also, just a quick little aside... I made this chapter a bit longer, but I wanted to let you guys know that you have a choice here. I can either update three or four times a week, with short twelve hundred word chapters, or I can update once every week and a half with a five thousand word chapter. So... yeah. That being said, thanks to everyone for reading, special thanks for reviewing. : )

* * *

Jesse sighed as she stretched back out on the blanket, crossing her arms behind her head as she closed her eyes again, determined to get at least an hour's worth of sleep. After Daryl had stomped off last night, she'd spent the rest of the night tossing and turning, trying to figure out what she'd done wrong.

"Uh... I um... Maggie brought us some peaches and jerky. Did you want some?"

Jesse had to fight back the groan that threatened to escape her lips as Glen's shadow blocked out the sun.

"What?"

"I've got peaches. And jerky. Did you want some?" The Asian repeated, giving her a nervous smile.

Jesse sat up, practically drooling. "Peaches?"

"Yeah. They're pretty good," He chuckled, sitting down a few feet away, and tossing one of the golden fruits to her. "So uh... Daryl's been biting everyone's head off this morning."

Jesse glared as she ripped into the peach, swiping at her chin as a bit of the juice escaped her mouth, dripping down onto her chest. "And? How the hell is that my problem?" She finally muttered.

"Well... Me an' Dale jus' thought that... since you two are... Well, you know..." He finished awkwardly.

"No. I don't. Why don't ya tell me jus' what the fuck y'all think me an' him are, huh? Jesus, ain't none a y'all got nothin' better ta do than sit an' fuckin' gossip? We's jus' friends; hell, I ain't even sure we're _that_ after last night."

"So you two _did_ have a fight."

"Glen... I like ya. So I'm gonna give ya a warnin', a'ight? Get the fuck outta here 'fore I bash ya damn skull in."

* * *

"How you feeling?"

Daryl grunted, rolling over to face Dale as the older man entered the small tent. "Don't y'all have somethin' better ta do than bug the shit outta me?" He muttered.

To his surprise, Dale only chuckled. "To be honest... No, not really. I was visiting with Glen, but he ran off to offer Jesse some of the peaches he got from Hershel, so I figured I'd come check on you."

"Don't need a damn baby-sitter, ol' man. M'fine. Why don't ya go bother the midget?"

He fought back a groan as the older man situated himself on the other cot. What the hell was so damn complicated about _'leave me alone'_? He didn't need everybody coming in, babying him; hell, he was pretty sure Carol would of wiped his damn ass if he'd asked her too. Everybody had taken their damn turn 'checking on him' before they'd all went off to 'target practice' or some stupid shit.

More like they was all just wasting time, instead of being out looking for Sophia.

"You know... My sister and I... We were always going at it. Like cats and dogs," Dale said with a smile. "I remember this one time... I don't even know what started the fight, but we didn't talk to each other for almost a week."

"Ya got a point with this, Dale, or ya jus' ramblin'?"

"My point is... Whatever you and Jesse are arguing about... It's not worth it. At the end of the day, you have to ask yourself if whatever's going on between you two is worth your friendship."

"Christ Almighty. What, Lori's little threesome ain't causin' no problems? Y'all ain't got nothin' better ta talk 'bout than me an' Shorty? Ya ever stop ta think that maybe we jus' needed some damn space? Since y'all been sittin' 'round on yer asses, me an' her spent the past four days together tryin' ta find Sophia," He said with a pointed glare. "So why don't ya jus' leave us the hell alone, huh?"

Dale took a deep breath, pursing his lips together as he stood, nodding as he moved towards the door. "Fair enough, I guess. Sorry for bothering you."

* * *

Daryl and Jesse were still avoiding each other, Carol noticed absently, as everyone gathered around the fire for dinner that night. They sat on opposite sides of the fire, avoiding even looking at each other.

"How you two holdin' up?"

Rick's voice cut through the chatter, and Carol wished that he'd just kept his damn mouth shut for once as Daryl muttered something under his breath, staring at the ground, and Jesse glared.

"Dunno 'bout him, but I'm goin' back out tomorrow," Jesse snapped, rolling her shoulders angrily, practically vibrating in her anger. "Seein' as how y'all let the trail go cold today while ya wasted time an' ammo playin' cowboys."

Daryl's loud snort pulled every eye in his direction, and Carol started wondering just how bad things were going to get as he spoke.

"Oh yeah, that's jus' fuckin' brilliant, Shorty. Already stitched that leg up three times; what's a few more?"

"You got any better ideas, I'd like ta hear 'em," Jesse retorted, pushing herself unsteadily to her feet.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Rick interjected. "Aren't neither of you going anywhere. Not until Hershel says otherwise."

"Oh yeah? Says who? You?" Jesse asked dismissively. "You ain't my dad, an' I sure as hell ain't yer bitch."

An uneasy silence fell over the camp as Jesse stormed off into the darkness, nobody looking at anybody else for a few moments, before Carol sighed.

"Suppose I ought to go talk to her."

She was surprised when Shane set his hand on her shoulder, and she looked up at the deputy questioningly.

"Lemme do it. Don't think she needs any more mothering right now," He said quietly, gently pushing her back down.

* * *

Shane followed the girl halfway across the field, before she finally stopped, turning to glare at him.

"What? Ya come out here ta try an' force me ta sit on my ass?" She snapped, her eyes flashing darkly.

"Nope. You wanna go out an' get yourself killed, be my guest," He said simply, kneeling down on the soft dirt. He almost chuckled at the surprised look that flashed across the girl's face.

"Then why the hell ya follow me out here?"

"How old're you?"

"What?"

"I asked you how old you were," Shane repeated patiently, looking up at her.

"'Bout eighteen. What the hell's that got ta do with anythin'?"

"Eighteen. An' you know all there is to know, right? Lemme ask you somethin': do you have any idea what you's killin' yourself for? I mean, you seem like a smart girl to me. You gotta know you ain't gonna find Sophia," He said quietly. "At least, you ain't gonna find her alive."

"No shit," She retorted, still glaring. "Doubt she made it more than two days out there by herself."

"Alright then. So tell me, what's a few days difference gonna make?"

"Ya know what? How 'bout I ask you a fuckin' question, huh? You don't like me; hell, you ain't liked me since I tried ta gut ya. So why the hell's it matter to you what I do? An' don't give me some bullshit 'bout me bein' part a the damn group. You's right, I ain't stupid. The only thing you care 'bout is Lori an' her damn kid. What, ya think nobody else's figured it out?" She said sarcastically, rolling her eyes. "Hell, everybody but Glen knows. So c'mon then, tell me why the hell ya chased me out here, actin' like ya give a shit what I do."

Shane was quiet for a few minutes. Really, the girl was right; mostly, anyways. Finally, he nodded. "You's right. At the end a the damn day, it ain't gonna break my heart if you go out there tomorrow, and don't come back. That don't mean I don't like ya; jus' means that you ain't my problem. So you wanna go out, an' kill yourself over a little girl that you already admitted is dead, be my guest. Ain't no skin off a my nose.

"But it matters to the group. Matters to Carol; sure as hell matters to Daryl. And whatever you may think 'bout me... I'm jus' doin' what needs to be done to keep this group safe. Every choice I make is to protect the damn group.

"Now, you were right with what you told Rick. I'm not your daddy. I can't force ya to do anything. But you just stop and take a second to think 'bout what it's gonna do to Carol if you go out tomorrow. What it's gonna do to her if somethin' happens to you. So instead of actin' like a damn child, why don't you grow the hell up, and start thinkin' 'bout somebody other than yourself, hmm?"


	46. Chapter 46

A/N: Ok, so maybe I came across harsher than I meant to last chapter, I wasn't mad at anybody. Several people have mentioned the chapters being short -and trust me, I won't even try to deny that my chapters are short -and I wanted you guys to know that if you wanted, the choice was up to you. But, that being said, I wanted to give a special shout-out to FanFicGirl10, because -even though I didn't realize it til last night- she was my two hundred reviewer! Wow! I can't believe this is already up to two hundred reviews. If we can get 229, that will make this story my one with the most reviews! YAY!

* * *

To say that Daryl was irritated would have the fucking understatement of the goddamn year. Watching the midget stalk off –and damned if he hadn't stood to follow her almost before he knew what he was doing – and then to have Shane of all people –Shane, who wasn't exactly the most stable guy ever –go after… Well… By the time the ex-deputy had come back to the fire, Daryl had been working his way past 'pissed', and when he seen that Shane was alone…

Shit.

"Where the fuck's the midget?" He demanded, pushing himself to his feet again, one hand going to his side as a wave of pain shot through his chest.

Shane glared at him. "She told me she wanted to be alone for a bit. Hey!" He called, as Daryl started towards the field. "Didn't ya hear me? Said she wanted to be alone!"

"She's a fuckin' kid; don't care what she wants, she ain't gonna be out there all 'lone!" Daryl shot back, turning just long enough to return the other man's glare. "Can't believe you'd jus' leave her by herself."

"Daryl –"

"Did I fuckin' ask for yer damn opinion? I said she ain't gonna be out there alone!" He barked back over his shoulder, pain coursing through him with every step as he moved into the tall grass of the field. "Shorty? Shorty, where the hell are ya?" He called, trying to sound a lot calmer than he felt. Damn idiots, leaving a fucking kid alone in a damn field during the fucking end of the damn world. "Shorty!"

"Jesus, don't none a ya understand 'leave me the fuck alone'."

"Holy shit!" Daryl cussed, jumping in surprise, the midget's voice coming from just a few feet away from it, somewhere off to his right. He frowned, and moved a bit closer, finally spotting her laying in the grass, practically invisible in the darkness. "Tryin' ta give me a damn heart attack?! What the hell are ya doin'?"

She glared up at him, not moving as she snapped, "Tryin' to get half a damn second a quiet. What're _you_ doin'?"

"Lookin' for you," Daryl retorted, dropping down next to her, trying to situate himself without aggravating his side anymore. "Thought you had more brains than ta sit out here by ya self at night."

"Well, maybe I thought bein' walker bait sounded more fun than havin' everybody at the camp askin' me how I 'feel'. Better than havin' ya glare at me the rest a the damn night," She said with a snort.

"I wasn't glarin'," Daryl muttered, even though he knew it was a damn lie. He had been glaring at her as soon as she'd limped down to the fire. But he hadn't actually been glaring at her. Or maybe he had.

Fuck if he even knew anymore. Damn girl had his head all twisted up, he didn't even know what he was thinking half the damn time. He'd spent all day trying to figure out what the hell they were. What the hell her problem was, and how he even fit into all of it. Why it bothered him so much.

"Sorry 'bout… what happened to ya."

Well, shit. That hadn't been what he meant to say.

Then it was her turn to glare, pushing herself on her elbows. "I don't need yer damn pity, Daryl. Don't _want_ it. Shit, don't know why I ever fuckin' told ya," She said quietly, before laying back down, glancing up at the stars.

Daryl sighed, moving closer to her, before folding his hands under his head. He'd briefly considered putting his arm around her, but after the previous night's fiasco, he decided it was piss poor choice.

"Shorty… I'm jus'… I'm jus' tryin' ta figure… I mean… Shit, why the fuck would ya try an' feel me up?" He asked awkwardly, with more than a bit of desperation.

_That_ was what had his mind reeling. Trying to figure out why the hell she'd try something like that while he was asleep. Why she'd do that when he hadn't even hinted at it. Had he? Fuck.

"Ya ever stop ta think maybe I jus' like ya?" She asked, and he could hear the nervousness in her voice.

"No. It didn't," He said, a bit harshly. "Ya said it was 'cause I was… 'cause I was nice. Jus' what the hell was that supposed ta mean?"

He felt more than seen her fidgeting beside him. "I… Whaddya want me to say?" She finally asked, sounding so lost and broken that it made him uncomfortable. He should have let Carol come out and talk to her, or Dale. Somebody who actually had a fucking clue how to make… whatever the hell 'this' was, right. How to fix it.

But since they weren't there, and he was, and the midget was looking at him, waiting for him to say something…

"I want ya ta tell me that ya grabbed my dick 'cause ya honestly wanted ta… ta have sex with me. Tell me that it wasn't some… some fucked up idea ta pay me back." When she was silent, he sighed. "Yeah. S'what I thought. Jesus, Jesse… That… That's not how… You don't just have sex with somebody jus' 'cause they're nice ta ya."

"Most guys don't have a problem with it."

He groaned as he sat up, scrubbing a hand over his face. "Why we gotta do this again, girly? I told ya before, an' I'm tellin' ya now: I ain't like that. I was nice ta ya 'cause ya needed a damn friend. Not 'cause I wanted ta get in ta yer damn pants. I let ya tag along with me 'cause I like ya. As a friend," He added quickly, wanting to make sure she didn't get the wrong idea.

"Why?"

"Why what?" He asked, confused.

"Why do ya like me?" She asked quietly, sitting up next to him. "I know I'm annoyin', an' I'm loud, an' I got a temper… I know I'm stupid. Only reason anybody's ever wanted me ta stick around before was for sex. An' I think we've know you ain't interested in that," She said with a sad chuckle. "So why the hell do ya let me hang out with ya?"

Daryl chewed on his bottom lip for a minute. "Ya ain't annoyin'. Least ways, a hell of a lot less than everybody else 'round here. An' it takes somebody with a hell of a temper ta deal with me all day. An' you sure a fuck ain't stupid. I… It's kinda nice havin' somebody I can actually stand 'round here," He grumbled, careful to not look at her. "An'… maybe I… Maybe I jus' like ya."

He finally reached out, and put one arm around her shoulder, pulling her close to him, sighing softly as she cuddled tighter against him.

"Ya know… Think that's the first time ya called me 'Jesse'," She said after a while.

"Yeah well… Don't get used to it. Shorty," He muttered, rolling his eyes.

* * *

It was a few hours later when he heard somebody approaching. Instinctively his hand went to his knife, and he turned his head, every muscle in his body tensing.

"Daryl? Jesse?"

He relaxed, easing up on the hilt of his knife as he heard Carol's quiet voice.

"Over here," He called back, keeping his voice low as the girl shifted beside him, muttering something in her sleep as she pushed herself further against his side.

"I brought you out a blanket," Carol said with a smile, holding up a large quilt. "Hershel sent it out. He said –and I quote – 'I'm not going to have those kids freeze to death after all the work I've done keeping them alive'," She finished with a chuckle, laying the blanket over them.

Or at least, laying it over his legs, and most of Jesse's body, seeing as how she was curled up next to him, her head and one arm laying on his chest, her fingers curled into his shirt.

"Uh… thanks, I guess," He muttered, laying his head back down. As Carol nodded, and disappeared from sight again, he moved his hand back to Jesse's head, running his thick, calloused fingers through her curly, black hair.

He wasn't even sure why he was doing it. But it felt like the right thing to do, and for once, Daryl was just gonna go with the flow.


	47. Chapter 47

For once, everything was good in Jesse's world. Probably wasn't gonna last, she thought with grimly, but for that moment, as she followed Daryl back to the camp, and plopped down in one of the camping chairs next to him, everything was good.

And the fresh scrambled eggs weren't anything to scoff at neither. Carol scrapped some onto two dishes that she then handed to Jesse and Daryl, just the smell making her want to drool.

But then... Glen had to go and ruin it all.

"Um... guys? So... The barn's full of walkers."

* * *

Jesse hung back a bit, staying behind Daryl, as Shane peered into the barn. Although she couldn't really see the point; hell, she could hear the moans, groans, and growls from where she stood a few yards away.

"You can't tell me your okay with this," Shane said darkly, walking back to where the rest of the group was huddled.

"No, I'm not, but we're guests here. This isn't our land," Rick said firmly.

"Ya fuckin' kiddin' me?" Jesse demanded, taking a step back as the doors on the barn began rattling.

"This is our lives, man!" Shane snapped, throwing his hands up in frustration.

"Shane's right, we can't just sweep this under the rug like we did the gun thing," Andrea interjected. Jesse watched as the group began dividing itself. Dale, Glen, and Lori moved behind Rick, with Andrea and T-Dog standing next to Shane. Jesse still hung back, standing behind Daryl, Carol beside her.

"This ain't right. Not _remotely_," T said with a shake of his head.

"We either gotta go in there, an' make things right, or we just gotta go. Now we've been talkin' 'bout Fort Benning for a long time –"

"We can't go!"

"Why, Rick, why?!" Shane demanded.

"Because my daughter's still out there," Carol said desperately, tears in her eyes as she took a step forward.

"Oh, Jesus... Carol, I think it's time we all start to just consider the other possibility."

"You shut yer fuckin' mouth!" Jesse swore, before Rick held a hand up, pushing her back a bit. She fell back a few steps, still glaring at Shane. Even though the man was right, the asshole had no right to be saying shit like that to Carol. It was nothing short of fucking cruel.

"We're not leavin' Sophia behind," He said, and Jesse wasn't sure who exactly he was talking to.

"We're close to findin' this girl, I jus' found her damn doll two days ago!"

"You found a _doll_, Daryl, that's what ya did. You found a damn _doll_!" Shane shot back.

"You don't know what the hell ya talkin' 'bout!"

"Hey, I'm jus' sayin' what needs ta be said here!" Shane yelled. "We all know she ain't alive no more! All we're doin' is riskin' more lives by goin' out there, lookin' for a girl who probably didn't make it one damn night! Even your little fuckin' shadow knows that!"

Jesse froze, as Carol and Daryl turned to look at her. "That wasn't what I meant, asshole, an' you fuckin' know it!" She spat.

Shane stared at her incredulously for a moment, before scoffing. "Ya know what? You two fuckin' redneck hicks go on back out there then. Even if she _was_ alive, an' she seen you two comin', all drugged out with ya damn buck knives and bows shootin' everythin' in sight? She would run in the other direction!"

Almost quicker than Jesse could follow, Daryl dove at Shane. Without thinking, when she seen Andrea throwing herself into the middle of the now-screaming fighters, Jesse jumped in, reaching out, and yanking the blonde back by her hair, and throwing her out of the fray, as Rick, T-Dog, and Glen separated Daryl and Shane. The two women eyeballed each other for a second, before Rick's voice stopped them.

"That's enough!" He thundered, glaring around the small circle that had formed. "Just let me talk to Hershel! We'll figure this out!"

"Just what the hell is there to figure out?!" Shane screamed back, and for a second, Jesse thought he was going to lunge at Rick, before Lori stepped in between the two.

"Look, if we're gonna stay, if we're gonna clear this barn, I have to talk him into it!" Rick said, a pleading note in his voice. "This is _his_ land!"

For the first time, Dale stepped forward. "Hershel sees those things as people. As sick people! His wife, his stepson!"

"Wait a minute; you fuckin' knew?!" Jesse spat. "You fuckin' knew, an' ya didn't say nothin'?!"

"I talked to Hershel yesterday."

"An' you waited the damn night?!" Shane demanded, getting in the older man's face.

"I thought we could survive one more night! And we did!" Dale said, and Jesse wanted to smack the high and mighty look off of his damn face. "I waited til this morning, but Glen wanted to be the one to tell you."

"Rick, if Hershel –"

Shane's angry tirade was cut short when the barn door started to bow, the growls getting louder.

"Not here. Everybody get back to camp!" Rick ordered. "Now!"

* * *

"Did ya really tell that asshole ya thought Sophia was dead? That we should jus' fuckin' leave?!" Daryl demanded, grabbing the midget's arm, and spinning her around. "Did ya?"

"I didn't mean it like that!"

"Jesus Christ!" Daryl swore, releasing her arm, and taking a step back. "Then jus' what the hell did ya mean, huh?!"

"It means, yeah, I think she's probably dead already! But dead or 'live, we can't leave till we know for sure! I ain't gonna leave her out there alive, an' I sure as shit ain't gonna let her be one a those things! An' don't you fuckin' dare look at me like that! I went out there lookin' for her too!"

Daryl glared for just a few minutes, before turning on his heel, and stomping off towards the barn. He stopped when he heard the midget behind him. "What the fuck ya think yer doin'?" He growled roughly.

"Goin' out ta look for the girl," She snapped.

"Like hell ya are!"

"What, 'cause I'm bein' the realistic one? 'Cause I'm gonna keep my eyes open for a dead body? That it? Ya ain't my fuckin' dad, Daryl! If I wanna go out, I'll fuckin' go!"

"The fuck ya will, Shorty! Yer gonna get yer damn ass back up to the house, an' stay there, ya hear me? I ain't gonna have ya out there slowin' me down."


	48. Chapter 48

A/N: Alright folks, so firstly? I apologize for the lack of updates. I was kind of waiting for the premiere to give me some more inspiration, but it just didn't work out that way. And this chapter is blocky, but... Well, the more I thought about it, I don't think there really was a right way to write this chapter. So... Here it is. Next chapter will have Daryl and Jesse hooking up, so... Yeah. Part of it is, I've noticed things get blockier, and choppier whenever I try to follow a scene directly from an episode, so this will probably be the last time I do that.

Also, little self-plug, for all interested parties, I've got a Merle/OFC fic going on if y'all wanna check that out.

* * *

Daryl almost felt bad, a flash of guilt coursing through him as the midget's jaw dropped, her eyes disbelieving. But even with that, he couldn't stop himself, the anger building inside of him over-riding everything else as he took a step towards her, towering over her as he glared down.

"I don't want ya out there! Ya ain't done nothin' but slow me down this whole fuckin' time! Shit, every Goddamn time I go somewhere with ya, ya end up gettin' hurt! Shit, why don't I jus' save us some fuckin' time, an' chop off ya damn leg, huh?! Save myself from havin' ta lug yer skinny ass back!"

"But I –"

"Ain't no 'buts' about it, Shorty! Jesus, what the hell do I gotta do ta get it through ya thick skull?!"

"Daryl!"

Andrea shoved in between them, using both hands to push Daryl back a few feet, as she wrapped her arms around Jesse's shoulders. He had the brief thought that the girl was in bad shape if she was actually allowing Andrea to touch her, but he quickly pushed that down, as he glared at the pair. Only Andrea met his gaze, her eyes flashing.

"Just what the hell is wrong with you, huh?! Christ, Daryl!" She snapped.

"Ya know what?! I don't need this shit from you bat-shit crazy women, a'ight?! 'Specially not from you, seein' as how ya fuckin' _shot_ me in the damn head," He snapped, turning on his heel, and stomping off towards the barn.

* * *

Andrea released a breath she hadn't been aware of holding as Daryl stormed away from them, making sure he was out of earshot before she turned her head to look at Jesse.

"You alright?" She asked softly, staring down at the girl. She was surprised to see a few tears dripping down her face, leaving a trail through the dirt on her face from their earlier scuffle.

It was heart-breaking, watching the small girl looking so lost and broken, like her entire world had just been ripped out from underneath her.

And maybe it had been, she thought sadly, as the girl looked up at her. After what Daryl had told her, she was willing to take a guess and say that Jesse probably hadn't ever had much stability… Or people she could actually count on.

"Um… Yeah, I uh… M'fine," Jesse said, her voice rougher than usual as she slowly pulled away from her. "Guess… Guess I'll go an' have Hershel take a look at my leg."

"Jesse," Andrea called after her. "I um… For what it's worth… You uh… I know you put a lot into finding Sophia."

The girl stopped, her back still to Andrea as she chuckled softly. "Y'all keep sayin' that. 'Did my best', 'tried my hardest', an' all that feel good bullshit… Don't change the fact that Sophia's been missin' four days, an' is most likely walkin' 'round out, rottin' an' lookin' for somebody to chew on."

"And that's not your fault," Andrea said patiently, folding her arms across her chest. "Some things… you just can't control everything. You did everything you could; nobody can ask anymore than that. Sometimes, certain things are just out of our control."

"Ya know what, Blondie? I don't need the fuckin' pep talk right now. 'Specially from you. Ya don't even _like_ me. So do me a favor, an' jus'… leave me the hell alone, a'ight?"

* * *

A few hours later found Jesse sitting on the front porch of the Greene home, along with Glen, Maggie, Carl, and two of Hershel's women. She'd tuned the idle chatter out a long time ago; Glen and Maggie just about made her hurl with their lovey dovey shit, and she found it a little... creepy... that Carl, Beth, and Patricia could just sit there playing checkers with at least a dozen walkers less than a hundred fucking yards from where they sat.

Hershel had said that Daryl's stitches were holding up pretty good; another week, and she'd be able to take them out. He'd actually seemed impressed with Daryl's patch-work job, which made her want to rip the damn things out then and there.

But she wasn't thinking about that, she reminded herself firmly. Wasn't thinking about him. She was keeping her attention focused on the immediate problem at hand.

As much as she hated to admit it, Shane had a point. They couldn't just sweep the issue under the rug, and trek on like they had with the gun rule. The barn seemed sturdy enough, but that didn't mean it would hold indefinitely. Get enough of the geeks pushing on those chains, and they'd snap like twine.

Maybe she should just go off by herself.

The thought stunned her for a minute. Going off on her own. Leaving the group behind. Leaving him behind.

Not thinking about him, she thought fiercely. And she wasn't leaving; not until they found Sophia.

Luckily, Andrea and T-Dog's approach interrupted her thoughts.

"You know what's goin' on?" T-Dog demanded, walking up with the blonde.

"Where is everyone?" Andrea asked, glancing around at the assembled group.

"Thought you an' Deputy Dumbo was supposed ta be out lookin' for the girl," Jesse grunted, pushing herself to her feet.

"He went off with Hershel... Said he'd be right back, but we were supposed to leave a couple hours ago," Andrea said unsurely.

"Yeah you were."

Daryl's voice sent a twinge through Jesse, but she forced herself to meet his gaze anyways as he leaned on the railing, Carol standing next to him.

"Thought you were supposed ta go lookin' for her," She said, proud of how neutral she managed to keep her voice.

"Was gonna. Rick said he was goin' out, an' he'd handle it," He said quietly, not looking at her.

"Jesus Christ, we all playin' some game a 'Telephone'?" Jesse snapped. "So nobody knows where the fuck our Fearless Leader is."

"Ain't nobody takin' this shit seriously?! Got us a damn trail, an – " He cut off sharply, squinting towards the woods. "Here we go."

Jesse could feel the tension building in her shoulders as Shane stomped up towards the porch, the bag of guns slung over his shoulder, his face hard as he came to a stop in front of the small group.

"The hell's all this?" Daryl demanded, pointing to the guns.

"You with me, man?" Shane answered, holding out the shotgun. Daryl hesitated for only a second, before grabbing the proffered weapon.

Jesse hobbled her way down the porch. "Shane, what the hell's goin' on?" She asked quietly.

"Time to grow up," He said, his words hard, but his eyes soft as he held the nine mil out. When Jesse took it, he nodded, giving her a tight smile, before turning his gaze to Andrea. "Already got yours?"

"Yeah. Where's Dale?"

"On his way," Came the short, terse response as the ex-deputy handed T-Dog a pistol.

"Thought we wasn't supposed to carry," The black man said unsurely, holding the gun away from him, like it might bite him.

"Yeah, an' we was supposed ta be safe here," Jesse said with a snort, realizing exactly where this was heading, and fully on-board with the plan.

"An' now we know it ain't," Shane said loudly. "Was one thing hangin' 'round, pickin' daisies when we thought we were, but it ain't like that now. How 'bout you, man?" He asked, holding another shotgun out towards Glen. "You gonna protect what's yours?"

"Can you stop?!" Maggie said sharply. "You do this? You hand out these guns, my dad will make you leave the farm tonight."

"We have to stay, Shane!" Carl said, stepping off the porch. "We have to stay 'til we find Sophia."

"Grown-ups are talkin', sport, go find ya mama," Jesse said quietly. "Ain't none a yer business."

"What the hell is going on?!"

Jesse groaned as Lori walked out onto the porch, her eyes promising hellfire and brimstone.

"This isn't your decision to make, Shane!" The older woman snapped, pushing Shane away from her son.

"Well, somebody's gotta start makin' 'em, honey, an' since yer husband's done disappeared, I'd say it is his fuckin' decision," Jesse said firmly, checking the clip on the Ruger.

"You stay out of this!"

"Ya best get outta my face, 'fore I break yer damn jaw."

* * *

Daryl quickly stepped between the midget and Lori.

"Not now, Shorty," He said quietly. "Ain't the time or the place for –"

"Oh, _shit_."

T-Dog's low curse drew all eyes in his direction.

"Is that..."

_Fuck_. Daryl could feel his blood boiling as he shoved the midget behind him, his eyes locked on the walkers Rick was helping lead right into the fucking camp.

"What is that?!" Shane muttered, before taking off at a run towards Rick, Hershel and the boy.

He hesitated only a second, glancing back at Jesse, before giving her a nod. The two of them took off after Shane, in the general direction of the barn.

"This ain't gonna end good," The midget yelled, limping along a few feet behind him.

Daryl didn't even dignify that with a response.

* * *

Jesse didn't say anything as Shane ranted and raved at Rick and Hershel. Figured it was pointless; if they were putting themselves that close to walkers, probably had a couple screws loose, and weren't no amount of reasoning gonna change that. So she just kept her gun trained on the female walker's head, backing up as they got closer and closer to the barn. She could see Daryl on the other side, keeping his own gun aimed at the male walker.

"Hey, Hershel, lemme ask you somethin'... Could a livin', breathin' person, could they walk away from this?"

As he fired three rounds into the walker's chest, Jesse jumped, ducking low as Glen raised his gun, his finger dancing dangerously close to the trigger.

"Now that's three rounds through the chest. If they was alive, could they just take that? Why is it still comin'?"

This time, Jesse was expecting more shots, and she quickly moved out of Glen's line of fire, moving closer to Shane.

"That's its heart! Its lungs! Why's it still comin'?!"

"Shane that's enough!" Rick screamed.

"Yeah, you right, man. That is enough," Shane said, his voice full of contempt as he put a single shot in the walker's forehead.

Jesse ignored the rest of the speech. Ignored Rick screaming at Hershel to take the other walker. She just turned to face the barn, her gun trained on the door, as Shane swung a large pickax at the door.

"Open it!" She finally screamed, trying to drown out the other voices. "Open it!"

And then all hell broke loose.

She wasn't sure how many walkers she brought down. They'd underestimated how many was in there, that was for damn sure. Must've been at least twenty stuffed inside there, and more just kept piling out, like some sick, fucked up version of those damn clown cars at the circus.

And then just like that...

It was over.

The silence was deafening, as the shooters all turned to look at each other, carefully avoiding the pile of bodies they'd dropped.

"Somebody's gotta go in, make sure we got 'em all," She finally said, checking her clip to see how many bullets she had left.

But as she took a single step closer to the barn, a low growl came from inside, and she took a hasty step back, training her gun on the door again, as all the guns came back up, waiting.

And that was when the world came crashing down.

She dimly heard Carol's scream. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Daryl grab the woman, wrapping his arms around her, as the thing that had once been Sophia appeared out of the darkness, like a monster from the gates of Hell.

"Sophia! _Sophia_!"

Jesse could barely see, the tears streaming down her face as she took another step forward, aiming her gun at the little girl's head, her heart-beat the only thing she could hear. But her finger refused to pull the trigger.

"Sophia!"

And then one loud shot rang out. And the little red-headed monster dropped to the ground, a neat little hole appearing in the center of her forehead.


End file.
